Wants
by Sweet Ashori
Summary: Prequel to my story "Needs". A tale of first steps and shared connections as two lonely souls realize they want the same things: the feelings of forgiveness, acceptance, and - most of all - love. KabuSaku. Rated M for cursing and lemon. Now complete!
1. First Step

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Obviously.

Authoress' Note: After writing "Needs" I had the urge to try and write something more in the same story setting. So I decided to write a prequel and a sequel. Reading "Needs" isn't necessary to reading the prequel, but I would recommend reading it afterwards.

I'm also taking some liberties with possible events after Scarlet Spring; I'd like to think that after being brought to the orphanage the Shin Uchiha clones were given the chance to grow their own personalities to go along with their names.

Wants

Chapter 1: First Step

"You've GOT to be fucking kidding me."

Sakura Uchiha was pissed. Today was supposed to be her day off, a day she was going to take to spend some quality time with her daughter, but instead she was summoned to the Hokage's office in order to obtain an emergency mission. Or at least, that was what she was lead to believe: the way the orderly was out of breath searching for her, she had to assume it was something imporant.

A check-up on the clones at the Konoha Orphanage was NOT something she thought was important.

"Sorry, but I just got the noticed from Kabuto. He said that there is a few too many for him to handle right now with his brother away currently, and it's time for them to get their check-ups," Naruto explained, "I figured they'd be better off being examined by someone they're familiar with than a random nurse from the hospital."

Sakura clicked her tongue, "Yeah... but you also know that I have no interest in doing anything in favor to that traitor either. You and Sasuke-kun may have forgiven him, but I hadn't and I don't have plans to do so either."

The Hokage sighed; he knew that his friend would react this way. Although he has hoped in the years since Kabuto Yakushi came back to the village and had humbly asked to return and run the orphanage that he had grown up in – alongside his adopted brother Urushi – that Sakura would eventually come to accept him trying to make atonement for his past sins. However, unlike with Sasuke whom also committed sins against her and the village, she had shown no signs on ever accepting the former spy as a member of Konoha again.

"Sakura-chan, I wouldn't be asking you if it wasn't for the fact that they're familiar with you," he said firmly, "I know you hate him, but can you please put aside your animosity for one mission? I'll even make sure you get an extra day off in return."

The rosette growled, then sighed and relented. "Even if I wanted to reject, I can't because it's coming from you," she said, earning a chuckle from her former teammate, "Fine, I'll get to it. Damn you, Naruto. You really know how to tick me off sometimes."

"Yeah, I know. Thank you, Sakura-chan."

* * *

"I'm sorry I dragged you out here too, Sarada. I was really hoping we could have our mother-daughter picnic like we planned, but I still wanted to spend some time with you today."

"I don't mind, Mama. I understand that Hokage-sama wanted you to work. I'm glad I can help you."

Sakura smiled down at her beloved daughter, gently patting her head much to the younger Uchiha's chagrin, then adjusting the large bag of medical notes and supplies on her shoulder. While she was angry with the fact that her day off was ruined, the rosette was very happy with the idea that she could still have time to spend with Sarada. It was very rare for the two of them to have days off together: Sakura usually at the hospital and Sarada on training missions with her team. It was nice to have a little bit of family time. Although, much to their agreed sadness, it wasn't much "family time" with Sasuke out on yet another mission.

The two ladies approached the clearing leading up to the lake and orphanage, and they could see the building coming into view. From the outside, the orphanage looked a bit old and ran down, but there were definite signs of improvement from previous years that Sakura had seen it. She couldn't imagine that Kabuto had anything to do with it, though; as far as she had known him, his hands were used for nothing but evil... a part of Sakura's mind chided her for that. While she hated him for what he had done, she couldn't deny that on some levels he had a good part of him... it didn't provide her the urge to forgive him, but at least she could acknowledge that.

"Mama, are those two of the clones?" Sarada asked, pointing to two figures playing with a ball next to the gateway into the yard, "They look so different!"

She was right, Sakura noted; they did look completely different. Their faces still looked the same, but something about them definitely changed. They each wore different colored clothing – one was wearing a red long-sleeved shirt and white shorts while the other was wearing a green tank top with white arm warmers and black pants – but they were smiling and laughing as they threw their ball back and forth. They definitely weren't the same emotionless clones that were brought there months ago.

They seemed to sense the Uchihas approach them, as they stopped and turned towards their presence. The smiles that were there faded into a small frown, and Sakura seemed apprehensive about coming any closer. "Hello," she greeted, "We're not here to harm you... we were sent by Hokage-sama at the request of your father."

"...Father asked you to come?" the red-shirted clone said apprehensively, shifting his eyes towards his brother as he clutched the ball a little tighter in his arms.

"Yes he did... do you remember us?" Sarada asked calmly.

They remained quiet, then the green-shirted clone made steps towards the two ladies. He eyed them over with his ringed orbs, the sight making Sakura shake inwardly for a moment, but then he smiled and turned back towards his brother. "It's okay, Ura! They're good!" he said, "I remember them now!"

Ura's face seemed to have lightened up, but he didn't approach, "I don't know... I remember them too, Ryo, but..."

"We aren't going to harm you," Sakura reassured, "We're only hear to check up on everyone. Your father had asked us to help because he was having troubles doing everything alone."

Ura pouted, "They aren't good, Ryo! I don't want a check-up!"

Ryo laughed, "Don't be silly Ura! If Father said it's time, then we're going to listen. Don't make Father angry!"

"Ughhh... I don't want to!"

The green-shirted clone continued to laugh, "Please don't mind my brother. He doesn't like check-ups. He said it's weird, but I guess you might know why... right?"

Sakura smiled, a bit of sadness behind it, "Yeah, I know... I'm sorry that you still feel that pain, but I promise to make it as easy as possible... do you think you two can take us to your father now?"

"Yeah, we will. Come on Ura! Let's take them to Father!" Ryo yelled, receiving a groan and nod from Ura, and the two of them went towards the gate, the Uchiha ladies following close behind.

Sakura watched as the skiddish clone kept eyeing them over his shoulder, then back at his brother. She felt sympathy for him; she knew that with their creator – the original Shin Uchiha – anything related to medical likely meant that they were to be used as the creator's new body parts. Now that they finally had a chance to taste freedom and individuality, they refuse to experience anything like that again. Sakura sighed; she was sure that many of the other clones felt this same way and she knew that easing their fears was likely going to be the hardest part of the day.

"Mama, are you alright? You look sad," Sarada whispered, grabbing at her mother's hand with a look of concern in her onyx orbs.

"Oh!" Sakura exclaimed, looking down at her child with a smile, "I'm alright, dear. I don't mean to look sad, but I do feel bad for all of them. I can understand why they might be afraid."

"Not all of us are afraid!" Ryo exclaimed, "Some of us understand that it's a part of life. Father told us that when we're getting a check-up it's not to harm us, but to make sure we're healthy. He says that one day we'll be grown and can be whomever it is we want to be, but we need to be healthy to do that. I'm sure once you and Father get things started and see how we handle it, everyone else will follow suit."

Sakura chuckled, "You're so wise, Ryo."

A small tinge of blush formed on the clone's face as he sheepishly laughed. Ura's face scrunched up into a pout, "I'm wise too! And I can be brave too! Ryo, you're such a show-off!"

Sarada laughed loudly, and Ura began to blush the same as his brother. "They remind me a bit of Mitsuki and Boruto," the young Uchiha said, "It's really funny."

"Mitsuki-aniki? You know him?" Ura asked, receiving a nod in response.

"Yes. He's one of my teammates. You call him your brother?"

The two clones nodded. "He's our older brother. Well, at least we call him our older brother," Ura explained, "He helps out Father and Uncle, and plays with us a lot when he's not out on missions. We didn't know you were his teammate."

"I see," Sarada said, "I guess Mitsuki doesn't talk much about his team?"

"He does, but we didn't know who they were. He just says Sarada and Boruto."

"Ah... well, I'm Sarada. I guess it's a good thing to be formally introduced then."

"Yeah, I guess so..." Ryo said, "Father should be right down this hall. Usually about now he's out in the courtyard reading to our brothers... yep, he is! Father! The ninja you asked for are here!"

Sakura couldn't really see his face at first, but surrounded by twelve or so Shin clones was Kabuto. He was dressed in a long, black robe, sitting on a stool with a book in his hands. She stepped a bit closer and then could see more of his features; his skin was pale in the sunlight, almost radiating him like a ghost, but she could still see the cracks and scars upon his face. What surprised her the most was that she could see a serene smile upon his lips, something that she couldn't recall ever seeing with him. It actually angered her a bit: after what he had done towards them, why does he get the right to smile like that?

Still, she didn't want to let the clones know her discomfort, so she kept her emotions in check. She watched as Ryo and Ura run towards him and with the turn of his head Sakura could see the violet rings around his eyes and the golden color to the orbs sparkle from the sunlight. There was a small glint of light reflecting off of his thin frames, but it didn't seem to affect his view. He lifted his head and their eyes met. Sakura could feel her anger rising upon seeing those once-traitorous eyes, but noted how tired and soft they seemed. Kabuto turned back towards the clones, excusing himself as he stood from his seat and placing the book upon it, then walking back with Ura towards their guests.

"Please forgive me for not meeting you at the gate. I wasn't sure who or when anyone would be coming, so I took liberties with the time," Kabuto explained, "Mitsuki-san should be back soon with the other children; they had gone out to gather some herbs and mushrooms for tonight's meal."

Sakura chuckled, "Should've known Naruto would forget to send out a notice."

"It's alright. He is the Hokage; I'm sure he's busy with other requests. Ura, why don't you take Sarada-san out to the garden and tell Mitsuki-san that it's time to bring everyone in," the silver hair male asked, receiving a nod in return, then he turned towards the clones watching from the courtyard, "Children, please go to the gathering room and wait for us there. You all know that today is check-up day; I promise we'll make sure it'll go as smoothly as we can, alright?"

There was a unison "Yes, Father" echoing in response as they all stood up and made their way. Ura turned towards Sarada and grabbed at her arm, "This way, Sarada-san! Mitsuki-aniki will be over this way."

Sarada let out a small, surprised squeal as Ura began to run with her in tow, leaving Sakura and Kabuto standing next to each other alone. Sakura scoffed gently, but smiled all of the same, "It's not often she allows herself to be dragged. It's actually a bit funny to see it in reverse."

"I'm sure it is," Kabuto added, "She's very much like you, but she looks too much like Sasuke."

The mood began to change, and Sakura could feel anger welling up inside of her again. She clenched her fists together, something Kabuto was quick to notice but he didn't comment. He looked towards the floor, a sad grin on his face. "It's been a very long time since we last met, Sakura-san," he said quietly, "Not since I came back to Konoha."

"Yeah," the rosette said, "About six years ago or so. I couldn't believe it when I saw you in the Hokage's office. Naruto and Sasuke-kun had to hold me back from pummeling you into the ground."

"Seems like you're still holding back," Kabuto noted, eyeing her fists then up to her fiery emerald eyes, "I can't say I don't deserve it, even after all of this time."

"Oh, you definitely do. As far as I'm concerned, nothing you can do with clear you of the crimes you've done to my village, to my friends and family," Sakura bit back, gritting her teeth, "Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that I'm the only other medic-nin the clones were familiar with, I wouldn't be here at all. I could go the rest of my life without seeing your face again."

Kabuto didn't reply; just continued to sadly smile at her. It made Sakura even angrier. "What? Don't have anything to say to that?" she asked harshly.

"Thank you for coming, for them."

She was a little surprised at the answer. Not at the words that were said, but at the tone he said it with. It was soft and she could feel no hints of malice or sarcasm. There was weight behind those words, a strong and powerful meaning with no lies or distrust within in them. Suddenly, the rosette felt a bit wrong for her anger, relaxing her fists and looking away from his steady gaze. "Y-yeah... can you just lead me to wherever we're doing the exams at?" she asked sheepishly, "I want to get this done... today was supposed to be my day off."

Kabuto chuckled to himself, "I understand. Please, follow me this way."

* * *

The gathering room was huge, something Sakura was grateful for considering the amount of people she had to help examine. They had set up a make-shift privacy area in two sections, splitting the clones into two lines. Sarada and Mitsuki kept order while Kabuto and Sakura did the examinations, recording everything for hospital records to be filed later. For the most part, things were going smoothly; any time someone started to get out of line, Sarada or Mitsuki calmed things back down, allowing the medic-nin to work without interruption.

While the clones seemed to pay no mind to it, the two young ninja could tell there was some sort of tension between the two adults. "What do you think is going on between my mom and Yakushi-san? I mean, he seems alright, but Mama is pretty tense... And I don't think it's because of the work," Sarada asked curiously.

Mitsuki shrugged his shoulders, "Perhaps it's because of their history?"

"History?"

"Yes... I had heard from both Father and Kabuto-san that he has a lot of history with the shinobi of Konoha... I'm guessing not great history, but it's there. I suppose that could be the tension?"

"Hmm... Mama never told me that she knew Yakushi-san," the bespectacled Uchiha murmured, her mind wandering as to what that history could be.

"No! I don't want to do the exam anymore! I've changed my mind! I want to go to my room!"

"Ura, calm down, please. It's not going to hurt and we'll be as quick as-"

"No! No, no, no! I hate exams! I don't want to do this!"

Sarada walked over to Kabuto's side of the room, where he was trying to calm down a very upset Ura. "What's wrong, Ura? I thought you said you were brave," she said calmly, bending down slightly to meet him eye-to-eye.

"I am brave! But... but I don't like exams," Ura said, looking away from the kunoichi, "They make me feel really weird..."

"Ura, remember what I've told you? This is a part of life. We need to make sure you are all growing up healthy so you can be a happy and healthy adult one day too," Kabuto explained, hoping his tone and smile will help calm down his frazzled child, but all he received was a furious "No!" in return.

Kabuto sighed in aspiration, a sad smile stretched across his features. Sarada noticed how tired the man looked, but yet it also didn't seem like he allowed it to affect him. She watched as he gently tried to persuade Ura to do the exam with no luck. An idea popped into her head and she turned back towards the scared clone.

"How about I hold your hand while you're being examined?" she offered, "If you get nervous, you can squeeze my hand, and if things get too scary I'll try to comfort you. Will that be okay?"

Ura stared at her for a moment, then looked away and nodded his head. "Thank you, Sarada-san. I appreciate the help," Kabuto said with a smile, "Alright, come right behind the curtain, please."

Sakura watched as Sarada took Ura's hand and stepped behind the examinating area. She was pleased with her daughter's offer to help, something she expected of her child to do, but she was even more surprised with how calm and kind Kabuto was being. She knew how cruelly he had treated "patients" in the past; it was beyond surprising to see how much care he was placing into each clone, treating them each like human beings and not like test subjects.

 _'Perhaps he really has changed...'_

* * *

"Yakushi-san?"

"You can call me Kabuto, Sarada-san. I don't mind it."

"Oh... okay, Kabuto-san," the young Uchiha corrected, "Um... what's the history between you and my mother? I can tell there was something between you two, but I don't really know what it is... Mitsuki had said that you two know each other."

Kabuto chuckled slightly, not looking up from his clipboard of notes, "You're very observant. Much like your father."

He sighed, motioning for Ura to turn around. "We used to be enemies," he said bluntly.

"Enemies?" Sarada asked, receiving a nod in return, "... From the war?"

"Even before the war. I was a spy for Orochimaru... he had wanted me to infiltrate the Chunin exams... the first year that your mother and her team entered," he said, jotting down a few more notes, "Alright Ura, sit down on the stool please."

Sarada knew who Orochimaru was, but was surprised to hear that this man had a connection with him too. She moved to stand next to Ura, still holding his hand, as Kabuto continued to do the exam and his story.

"I wasn't always a good man. I was evil. I committed a lot of sins against the villages... Back then, being evil was part of who I was. That was my identity," he said, his voice growing quieter as he went on, "I even changed my entire being in pursuit of my identity. There was a point where I was as pale as you were, if you choose to believe it... I was cocky, violent... I hurt a lot of people, including your mother. But..."

"But?" Sarada asked.

"Okay, Ura... deep breaths for me," Kabuto instructed, placing a stethoscope to his chest.

Sarada felt her hand being squeezed, "It's alright, Ura... I'm right here."

Ura nodded as he did as told, relieved when Kabuto removed the device from his chest, and went back to his notes. Sarada repeated her inquiry, "But...?"

"It was your uncle that helped me realize my mistakes and opened my mind to who I really was... that I had a mother that loved me, and a brother and home waiting for me here in Konoha. That my purpose was to be a father to the children that had none, just as my mother did for me," the male explained, "Alright, Ura. You can put your shirt back on and leave; you did really well with your check-up! So was that as bad as you thought?"

Ura shook his head, "No, it wasn't too bad... thank you Sarada-chan for being next to me!"

"Of course," Sarada said with a smile, taken aback by a sudden hug but returned it and laughed as he ran off, then turned back to Kabuto as he re-arranged his notes.

"I spent several years wandering the world after the war ended, until I finally came back here to Konoha six years ago... I realized my brother was still here, waiting for me to come back home, and with him by my side I went to the Sixth Hokage and asked if I could return," he explained, "Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun were there at the time as well... surprisingly, they took my side in convincing the Hokage to allow me to return... you see, during the war, once I realized how wrong I was, I joined in as an ally... when your father was heavily injured, I healed him... I wanted to do something for the brother of the man that opened my eyes."

"I see... Uncle Itachi really was a great man," Sarada whispered.

"I'm sure your father has plenty of stories about him that he'll share with you one day, but yes... he was," Kabuto agreed, "It was through your father and the current Hokage as to why I was able to take over this orphanage, but your mother... she had not forgiven me. When she entered the Hokage office and saw me, they had to hold her back from pummeling me into the ground."

"I see..."

Sarada looked over at her mother, watching as she looked over one of the clones with a gentle smile on her face. She had never known Sakura for holding grudges against people for so long; she even seemed to had given Orochimaru a chance! But perhaps her own perceptions were wrong...

"Please don't judge your mother harshly for this. I don't expect her forgiveness or acceptance, and I welcome the day where she does decide to beat me as my atonement for the sins I committed against her," he said softly, "I only wish to live peacefully and help my children grow and live a life that I never was able to. As long as I'm allowed that, I'm happy, no matter what must happen to allow me that."

He smiled at the kunoichi and settled himself back on his seat, "Can you send in the next child, please?"

* * *

It was sunset by the time all of the exams were done. Sakura and Sarada volunteered to help with making food – something Kabuto was grateful for, as he had told them that Urushi wasn't due back until the next day and usually cooking for this many mouths was a three-person task – and once everyone was happily fed the two kunoichi prepared themselves to leave back for home.

"I'll file everything in the morning; this is a little too much work to do tonight. I'll make sure a report gets sent out to you with all of the final results," Sakura confirmed, straightening the bag on her shoulder, "I'm sorry that we made a mess of the kitchen, however."

"It's alright. It's been a lot worse," Kabuto laughed, "Thank you very much for your assistance, Sakura-san. Yours as well, Sarada-san. Please come by and visit again; I'm sure the children would love to play with you, especially Ura. He seemed to had taken a shine to you."

"I'd like that," Sarada said with a smile.

"I hope your trip home is safe and uneventful. Until next we meet," Kabuto said, waving off the two visitors as they began to walk away, turning around to go back inside.

After a few steps, Sakura stopped walking. Sarada noticed and stopped herself, turning around and looking at her mother in confusion, "Mama? What's wrong?"

The rosette turned around, growling a bit to herself as she did, "Kabuto!"

The silver-haired male turned around sharply, surprised to hear Sakura call out to him. He watched as she stood rigidly, her hands balled into fists by her sides, but then watched as her hands relaxed and her body relaxed with a sigh, just as she had done earlier.

"Kabuto... I'm not ready to forgive you. But... but I'm willing to admit that I was wrong about you... you're proving yourself to be changed, and I can see that now. So..." Sakura said, trailing off for a moment as she looked at the ground, but then back up at him, "I can start trying to accept you."

Kabuto's eyes widened at her admission, much to her embarrassment for a strange reason, then he smiled and bowed to her. "Thank you, Sakura-san," he said, "Thank you."

Sakura nodded and turned around, waving him off and trying to ignore the blush that began to burn her face. Sarada chuckled and looked over to Kabuto, seeing him continued to smile as she walked away, waving back at him and took a few fast steps to catch up to her mother.

 _'This is a good first step... I hope it's the first of many to come.'_


	2. Tea

Chapter 2: Tea

It was an early morning, but Sakura and Sarada were both awake and out on the streets. It was a market day, where several vendors and farmers around the Land of Fire came to Konoha and set up shop. It was something, no matter how tired or busy they were, the two always made sure to go to explore what new and strange things could be found there.

"Wow! This is really pretty, Mama! It kinda reminds me of Papa's eyes," Sarada commented, pointing to a necklace that had a black and red swirled charm, "Don't you think so?"

"Yeah, it kinda does," Sakura commented, "Reminds me of yours too."

The bespectacled Uchiha forgot for a moment about her own ability to use the Sharigan and blushed at her mother's comment. Sakura laughed at her daughter's reaction as they continued to explore the makeshift booths and displays that lined the streets.

As they turned the corner from one section of the market to another, they came across some familiar faces. "Oh! Mitsuki, good morning!" Sarada exclaimed.

Looking at a booth of fresh produce was Mitsuki, with two of the clones by his side looking in awe at the food that laid before them. They were wearing hooded cloaks, hiding some of their imperfections from the overall eyes of the village, and they turned away from the booth upon hearing someone call out the name of their brother.

"Sarada-chan!" one of them yelled out, running towards the young kunoichi, and she could see that it was Ura.

"Hello Ura! Ooof!" she exclaimed, letting out the noise as Ura hugged her tight, "It's nice to see you again!"

"Me too! Oh, Sarada-chan! This is one of my brothers, Ita! I don't think you were able to meet him last time," Ura said, extending a hand out to the other clone.

Ita was a bit taller than Ura, but definitely more reserved. He hid behind Mitsuki, eyeing the pair of kunoichi suspiciously, brows furrowed as if angered by them. "I remember you two... I don't like you at all. You hurt us," he muttered.

"Ita, if you remember correctly, you attacked them first," Mitsuki pointed out, knowing the story from the day they were brought to the orphanage, to which Ita made no reply.

"That was in the past, Ita... Sarada-chan and her mother are really good people!" Ura said, chiding his brother for a moment, then turning back to his new friend, "So what are you doing out here?"

"Mama and I are exploring the market; it's something we do every time it comes to Konoha. I'm guessing you three are doing the same as well?"

"Yes. Kabuto-san asked us to buy some things we're low on, but we got distracted by the market as well," Mitsuki explained, "This is the first time these two had came out to the village, and I figured taking a little bit of extra time to explore wouldn't be a bad thing."

Sakura smiled, shifting the basket she had on her arm, "How sweet of you, Mitsuki."

"Thank you, Uchiha-san."

Ita pulled at Mitsuki's sleeve, eyeing Sakura for a moment, then back at Mitsuki. He stared at the clone confused for a moment, much to Ita's annoyance as he eyed an envelope in the ninja's pocket. "Ah," Mitsuki commented, realizing what Ita was trying to do, pulling out the envelope, "Uchiha-san, since you're here, I can deliver this in person then."

The rosette raised a brow as Mitsuki stepped forward and handed her the white package, accepting it with emerald eyes scanning it, "What is this?"

"It's a note from Kabuto-san. He had asked me to give it to Sarada to give it to you, but since you're here I don't need to do such a thing. I'm unsure what it entails; I was only asked to deliver it."

Sakura's eyes widened for a moment, staring at the paper in her hand. A letter from Kabuto? What could it be? While she said three weeks ago she was willing to start accepting him, she wasn't expecting him to be so bold as to try and communicate with her. While she was curious, she placed the envelope in her belt pouch for later, "Thank you Mitsuki."

"Of course. Alright, Ura, Ita. Let's get going on our shopping; I'm sure Kabuto-san and Urushi-san are waiting for us already," he said, grabbing Ita's hand.

Ura gave Sarada one last hug before going back to Mitsuki's side and grabbing his other hand, "Bye-bye Sarada-chan! Please come see us soon!"

As the three walked away, Sarada waved them off then turned back towards her mother. "Are you going to open the envelope, Mama?"

"I will when we get home," Sakura replied, "For now, how about we continue looking around?"

* * *

The afternoon was quiet in the Uchiha home. Sarada had gone off with Boruto for a sudden delivery mission, leaving Sakura alone in their home. Since it was her day off, she took the time to catch up on some of the housework and prepare a treat for her daughter once she returns home.

Once she was done with a few of her tasks, she took a break with a cup of tea and sat down at the kitchen table to read the mysterious package Kabuto had written to her. "I wonder what he has to say," she muttered to herself, unsealing the envelope and pulling out the contents. She unfolded it to reveal a letter, written in very fine script, and leaned back in her chair as she began to read.

 _To Sakura-san-_

 _Firstly, I wish to thank you for sending me the report from the check-ups on the children. I'm very happy and relieved to see how well they're growing and that they are all healthy. I'm sure you understand the feeling knowing that your children are growing up wonderfully, being a mother yourself. I'm grateful to you for your help and assurance._

 _Secondly, I had been reflecting upon what you had said that day. About accepting me. I had been wrestling with writing this letter to you since then, afraid of pushing things too far. This is the sixth attempt I've made at writing this, if that gives you an idea of my struggle..._

 _I want to talk to you, Sakura-san. I want to try and make things between us civil. I don't want to continue this feud between us. I understand that I have a lot of sins in my life that I must try to amend, and even then I may never be able to do so, but I want the chance to try and make them right with you. I don't expect friendship or forgiveness; merely acceptance and understanding is all I wish. I hope that if I need assistance with the children – they seem to trust you – that I can count on you and that they can see us working together with civility instead of strife or discomfort._

 _If you are willing to accept my invitation, please come join me for tea this Friday, around 2pm. If it helps ease your mind, Urushi will be here. I could imagine that you might had been thinking we would be alone, and I want assure you that this isn't the case._

 _You don't need to reply to this letter; I will take your answer on Friday on whether you come over or not. However, if you don't wish to, I will understand, and I apologize for any discomfort I've given you._

 _Signed,_

 _Kabuto_

Sakura sighed, placing the letter down on the table and looking out of the window. What a request he made! She looked back at it, reading it over again with a crinkled brow, then released another sigh.

"What to do..." she whispered, tapping her fingers nervously on the table, "What is the right answer?"

She took a sip of her tea, then stared into the cup. She was hoping the tea leaves could give her an answer, but they provided nothing. She shook her head at the thought, realizing it was an odd move, then looked back out at the window.

"What to do...?"

* * *

Kabuto sat at a table in a small room, a teapot with steam coming from its spout and two cups positioned in front of opposing seats. His leg shook slightly under the table in nervousness as he eyed a nearby clock. It was 2pm on Friday afternoon; today he would receive an answer to his letter for the rosette medic. He knew that it may go unanswered, and he was accepting of that, but he was hopeful to finally have this step towards the end of their feud.

Urushi would inform him if Sakura was arriving, but as the time clicked by and a half-hour had come and passed, he became more and more disheartened. He started to drink a bit of tea, noticing how cold it was becoming and frowned. "I suppose I should make another batch, just in case," he said quietly, standing up from his chair and setting everything up on a tray to transport it back to the kitchen.

Just as he went to lift up the tray, he heard the door click, followed by the sound of it opening. He looked up to see Urushi, followed by a clearly nervous Sakura. A sense of relief washed over Kabuto and he smiled, "Sakura-san."

"Hello, Kabuto... I'm sorry I'm late. I... I really didn't know if I should've came," she said, fixating her gaze on the floor instead of at him.

"I understand. No apologies needed," the bespectacled man said, "I was about to go and make some more tea. This batch had gone cold."

"I'll take care of it!" Urushi volunteered, taking the tray from his brother's hands, "Please, sit down Sakura-san. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Sakura nodded as both she and Kabuto sat back down, the door clicking close and the ticking of the clock the only noises made in their enveloping silence. The rosette felt her nerves getting to her in a strange way; she couldn't remember a time where she felt this type of nervousness. Yes, on her missions, there was always a sense of nervousness, from the fear of failing and of the consequences that could follow. This, however, was far different than that.

She could feel Kabuto's eyes upon her, and her eyes fluttered up from looking at her clasped hands on the table to meet with his. She noticed how golden they were, but surprisingly there wasn't a feeling of fear as she usually had gotten from the times he had seen the same color of Orochimaru's eyes. They didn't look menacing or evil; there was a sense of softness to them that she hadn't seen with him since their first meeting. His lips were still curled into a smile, but it wasn't sadistic or fake. She could tell there was a genuine sense of happiness within the expression. Slowly, she felt her nerves unwinding and her shoulders had started to relax.

"So... what do you wish to talk about?"

"We don't need to talk about anything, if you're not comfortable with it. Having you hear for tea is enough."

"But we should talk about something? I think it might get boring if we just sit here."

"I suppose that's possible. Very well... let's start with something simple. How are things at the hospital?"

"Well... pretty normal, I guess," Sakura said thoughtfully, "I'm always busy, but nothing is terribly crazy nowadays; the worst I saw this week was a broken rib and leg. The poor man fell from some scaffolding! Honestly surprised that was the worst he had suffered, considering that I was told they were about thirty feet up."

"That is terrible. I hope the gentleman is alright," Kabuto remarked with more empathy than Sakura ever expected.

"He will be, although I hope he'll be more careful next time; I don't know if luck will be that kind to him twice!" Sakura said, earning a chuckle from her tea partner.

She smiled gently, feeling herself relaxing a little more. _'Kabuto really has changed... he would've never shown empathy towards another human being years ago. Hell, he'd likely kill the man and use him for an experiment, all with a sadistic smile on his face,'_ she remarked to herself, _'It's actually... kinda nice to see this side of him.'_

"How is Sasuke-kun these days?"

The smile began to fade from Sakura's face, and Kabuto realized he made a mistake. "I'm sorry. I probably shouldn't have asked that," he quickly tried to correct, but Sakura shook her head.

"No, that's fine! Last I knew, he's been doing fine enough. I hadn't seen him about two weeks or so; the last time he was home, he was around for about three days before he set out on another mission," Sakura explained, "I wish he would stay much longer than that, for Sarada's sake, but I understand how important it is for him to do these things for Konoha and for Naruto."

Kabuto didn't say anything, but he understood. Like Sasuke, he also went on a journey of self-discovery before coming back to Konoha, and now is doing whatever he can to redeem himself in the eyes of the village. However, he didn't have such special loved ones constantly waiting for his return. He watched Sakura's head fall a bit, and he frowned. He moved a hand towards her, wanting to give her some comfort, but he hesitated before he could reach her hands.

The door clicked open again, forcing Kabuto to quickly retreat. Urushi pushed the door open, moving towards the table and placing the tray down. "I hope this will be more acceptable; I wasn't sure what strength you might enjoy your tea at, Sakura-san, so I tried to moderate it," he explained as he poured the tea into cups and passing them around.

"That's alright; however you make it is fine. I'm not that picky," Sakura explained, "Thank you, Urushi-san."

"Thank you, aniki," Kabuto echoed.

Urushi nodded, grabbing a chair to place at the table and his own tea cup, "Of course. So, what is the topic of conversation?"

"We were just talking about a few life things," Kabuto responded, "She was just telling me about her work at the hospital."

"Ah! It must be rather slow in peacetime, isn't it?" Urushi asked.

"To a degree. It's not crazy, but it's not like I spend my day doing puzzles at my desk either," Sakura replied, "I'm happy for the work I have, and could deal without any life or death situations."

"I can agree with that," the dark-haired male said with a chuckle, then before he could say anything further there was a knock at the door.

"Yes, come in," Kabuto answered.

The door opened and one of the clones appeared in the doorway, "I'm sorry for interrupting, Fathers, but some of the kids are fighting and it's getting really rough."

Urushi shook his head, standing up from his chair and heading towards the door. "I'm sorry to leave so suddenly, but I should look into this," he replied, giving them a small bow as his excuse, then following the clone with the door closing behind him.

Now alone, Sakura turned back towards Kabuto with an arched eyebrow, "We weren't talking about the hospital when he came in."

"I know that. You seemed so sad talking about Sasuke-kun, so I didn't want you to continue to make yourself upset just out of an obligation to talk with us," Kabuto explained, taking a drink from his tea, "You were relaxing and smiling before that; I want to see that again."

The bespectacled man smiled at her, a smile that surprised Sakura with how sincere it seemed, and her lips parted a bit in the surprise. Then she relaxed, smiling again as she grabbed her tea cup and took a sip. "Thank you, Kabuto," she said quietly, earning a nod in return.

* * *

The afternoon went on and before anyone knew it, it was nearly 5pm. Needing to head back home, they wrapped up their conversations, Urushi bid his goodbyes to Sakura before heading off to the kitchen to start on the nightly meal, and Kabuto escorted Sakura to the doorway for her departure.

"I'm glad you decided to come today, Sakura-san."

"So did I. I actually really enjoyed myself. It's been awhile since I just sat down and chatted with anyone. It was nice."

"You're welcome to come back at any time; I'll always have time to chat with you."

"Maybe I might accept that offer sometime," the rosette replied, "Thank you for inviting me, and for listening to me. I never really thought that I'd be able to enjoy tea and conversation with you."

Kabuto chuckled, "I can say the same. Well, I hope you have a safe trip home, Sakura-san. Please give my regards to Sarada-san, and invite her to come over the next time you wish to visit. I'm sure the children, especially Ura, would love to see her again."

"I'll see what I can do," Sakura said, looking down at the ground with her hands folded in front of her.

Kabuto arched a brow at her motions, confused by the sudden, shy expression she was showing. She looked up at him, lifting a hand towards him, a faint blush on her face but with a strong smile.

"Maybe we can be friends?"

Kabuto's eyes widened and his lips parted with a small gasp of surprise. He couldn't believe what he had heard. "Friends...?" he whispered, "Truly, Sakura-san?"

"Yeah. I mean, it's still going to be hard to forgive you for everything you had done, but... But you've proven to me that you have changed, and maybe we can try to be friends from here on out?" Sakura explained, looking away a few times as she talked.

The silver-haired male stood there stunned a few moments still, then smiled as he took Sakura's hand within his, "I don't expect forgiveness. But I would be honored to be able to call you my friend."

The two shook on it, smiling at one another, before letting go and Sakura turned away and began to walk back towards the village. She waved at Kabuto as she did, receiving a wave in return.

"Sakura-san..." Kabuto whispered, looking down at his hand, then back at her retreating figure, "Thank you."


	3. Emergency

Authoress' Note: I'm hoping that people may enjoy my portrayal of Kabuto at this point. I want to believe that, after everything was said and done, he did become a kinder, more caring person, but with a sense of brokenness about him. Sakura, to me, had always been a person willing to forgive others, even enemies, if they prove themselves to be worthy of forgiveness, such as she had with Gaara. I hope that this won't be considered "out of character" but even if it is, I'm basing it on my personal ideas and I hope that is enough.

Chapter 3: Emergency

Sakura and Sarada stood at the gates of Konoha with anxious and excited eyes focused on the horizon. Today Sasuke was set to return to the village, having sent word a few days ago that his current mission was done and that he was coming home until Naruto gave him a new mission. It had been over a month since he last came home, and the two of them were excited about the idea of having him home again and being able to have time together as a family of three.

"Mama, do you think that Papa will be home for awhile this time?" Sarada asked, looking up at her mother curiously.

"I hope so, darling. Sadly, you never know with your father, but I hope so. It'd be nice to have him around at least for market day; imagine how much fun it'll be walking around together!" Sakura responded, looking down at her daughter with a bright smile.

"Yeah! And maybe he can come to our training exhibition this weekend. I want him to see how much I've progressed."

"He'll be so proud of you, I just know it," Sakura complimented, squeezing her daughter's hand, "Oh! Looks like someone is coming!"

The two stared ahead and, sure enough, a figure cloaked in black was walking up towards the village. As it got closer, they realized that it was definitely Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun!"

"Papa!"

Sasuke looked up to see the two ladies waving hard at them, their eyes bright and smiles wide, and he couldn't resist smiling a bit himself to see his family waiting for him. He wouldn't really admit to it, but he did miss his family when he was gone for such long periods of time, disliking how much of his daughter's life that he has missed out. However, he had much to atone for, even after all of this time, and was willing to act as the village's protective shadow in any way he could to atone for those sins. Times like these, when he can come home and spend what time he can with them, was made even more special for those reasons.

As he got closer to the village gates, the two of them ran towards him, Sarada nearly tackling him with a hug. "Welcome home, Papa!" she exclaimed, "I missed you!"

He chuckled, ruffling his daughter's hair, "I missed you too, Sarada."

He looked up at Sakura, her face looking very serene as she stared at her family. "Welcome home, Sasuke-kun," she said softly.

"I'm home," Sasuke replied, giving Sakura a short hug before standing between the two ladies, Sarada holding his hand, as they walked into the village together.

"How was your mission, Papa?"

"Uneventful, but useful."

"Well, that's good then, right Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn."

Sarada smiled, letting go of her father's hand and quickly moving ahead of them before turning around to face them. "Well, then you'd have to drop off your report to the Hokage, right? I'll beat you there, Papa!"

"Sarada, don't go issuing race challenges to your father-" Sakura interjected, but Sasuke interrupted with a wave of his hand.

"It's fine, Sakura. Alright, Sarada. I'll give you a small headstart," he said with a smirk, making Sarada nod and laugh as she ran towards the Hokage Tower.

As she started to disappear from sight, Sasuke began to move, jumping from building to building and catching up within seconds to his daughter. Sakura watched the entire thing, laughing to herself, as she ran to keep up with her family.

 _'It feels so good to be all together again!'_

* * *

The Uchiha home was much livelier as the evening went on. After Sasuke had the chance to rest and clean up from his long mission, the three of them sat down to a board game – something Sasuke really wasn't into, but did so for Sarada's happiness – and a meal that both ladies worked on together. They were happy to see Sasuke enjoy their work, and were set to retire to the living room for another game when a loud knock echoed from the front door.

"Wonder what it could be at this hour?" Sarada asked as Sakura stood up to get the door.

The rosette looked through the little peephole, noticing that Naruto was standing there, and she quickly opened the door, "Naruto, what's the matter?"

Sarada heard Naruto's name and ran to the door, Sasuke looking up from his position on the couch at the doorway. The blonde looked panicked and worried, and that made Sakura nervous.

"Sakura-chan, I need you to come to the hospital now. There's an emergency with the clones; there was an accident!"

"An accident!? What happened?" Sarada exclaimed in shock.

"I was checking in on everyone when the cliffside we were at started to collapse. Twenty of them were on there when it fell. We managed to get everyone out, but we have two at the hospital in critical condition," Naruto explained, "We got them stable enough to transport, but we need your help and fast. Kabuto is already there and ready for your assistance. Urushi is helping with the rest of the injured."

"Right! I'll be over there as fast as I can!" Sakura acknowledged, quickly grabbing her work coat and shoes and putting them on.

"Can I help, Mama?" Sarada asked worriedly.

"Is there anything I can do?" Sasuke asked, getting up from the couch and walking towards the door.

Naruto nodded, "If you two can go to the orphanage and help with the wounded, that'd be a great help. Mitsuki is also there trying to get everyone patched up."

"Grab my medical bag from the closet, Sarada," Sakura instructed, "Thank you, both of you. Alright, Naruto, I'm ready!"

"Good, let's go!"

* * *

"So what happened with everyone else?"

"Mostly just broken bones and scratches. I sent a clone back with supplies for everything, and Urushi said he'd take care of it. I figured you could double-check everyone later."

"I will... Any deaths?"

"Yeah... six of them. Most on impact, one in Kabuto's arms as he was working on him."

"Oh no..."

Sakura went silent, the image of Kabuto's smiling face as he looked upon his children flashing through her head. She knew of his care for all of them and such a thing, especially knowing how he was now, filled her with a lot of sadness and hurt for him.

"This way, Sakura-chan. I have them in a private room," Naruto stated, leading the rosette through a set of double doors and then towards a single door at the end of the hall.

The two entered and Sakura gasped at the sight of the two clones upon the bed, bloodied and hooked up to a mess of wires and cords, their clothes ripped up and tattered. Next to one of them, hands upon their chest and glowing in green, healing chakra, was Kabuto. His robes were removed, laying on a chair covered in blood, revealing a violet tank top and black pants. His hair was disheveled from its ponytail, his glasses were spotted over with specks of red, and his eyes were puffy and strained. Sakura could tell he had been crying, and it broke her heart to see him such a state.

He didn't look up to see who were there, but he knew the answer without looking. "Sakura-san... I'm sorry for calling for you so late, but I need your help. Please," he pleaded, his voice cracking, "I know I'm not in any position to-"

"Shut up, Kabuto," Sakura said, tying up her hair, "We can talk later. Right now, saving their lives comes first."

There was no other words, but there was acknowledgment. Sakura stepped to Kabuto's side, facing the other clone. Before she could even begin to work, Kabuto spoke up, "He's passed on. A few minutes ago."

"We were too late," Naruto muttered, "Damn it!"

"There's time to mourn later," Sakura bit out, "Let's make sure not to lose this one!"

She quickly rushed over to the other side of the remaining clone, giving him the once-over to see what had already been done. "He lost a lot of blood. His arm is broke, but I have it set for now. I'm sure there's internal bleeding somewhere, but I can't sense it. I already tried to release some of the pressure on the brain, but not sure if I did any good," Kabuto explained.

"Naruto! Go to the nurse's station and ask for a surgeon tray. Tell them to make it up ASAP!" Sakura snapped, "We're going to have to go in."

"Got it!"

With Naruto gone, Sakura turned her full attention to the clone, her hands glowing green as the chakra began to flow through to them. "Who is this?" she asked, honestly unable to tell who it was.

"Ura."

"Ura!?"

"Yes... He tried to save one of his brothers when he fell. His brother was saved, but unfortunately he couldn't rescue himself," Kabuto said, wiping some sweat from his brow with the back of his arm, "I don't want to lose him. I've lost seven children today; I'm not about to lose an eighth."

Sakura looked up at him, placing her hands upon his for a moment, "We won't lose him. I promise."

* * *

Hours went by as the two medic-nin worked on Ura, Naruto watching carefully at their work. They did managed to save him, something of a great relief to everyone. They found a room where he could be watched over in private, with room for Kabuto or Urushi to stay with him until he was able to wake up again. Naruto made sure that the clone that had passed on would be brought back home to his brothers and will make sure they would have everything they need to give them a proper funeral.

"You two should get cleaned up and get some rest," the blonde stated, receiving a nod in agreement from Sakura.

"Ura should be stable enough for us to leave him for a bit," the rosette said, "I should take this time to check on Sarada and Sasuke-kun, and gather some supplies for the night."

"I'll stay here and watch him," Kabuto said, his eyes fixated on the monitors that Ura was attached to.

Sakura frowned and shook her head, "No. Come with me, Kabuto. You really should wash up, and I can get you something to eat too."

"I shouldn't leave his side."

"You can't neglect yourself. Please."

From behind dirty lenses, Kabuto's eyes looked up at the pleading rosette. He saw how her body was quivering slightly, although not from any sort of anger, but from her own tired state. He knew his body was doing the same, and despite his convictions to wanting to stay, his mind knew that they both needed time to recover their strength. He looked down at his attire, seeing how covered in blood his clothes had become, knowing also there was dried blood upon his skin as well.

"... Very well. Thank you, Sakura-san."

Sakura smiled faintly, glad it didn't get to the point of force, then looked over to Naruto. "We'll be back in a couple of hours. Please let us know if anything happens, but I'm thinking he'll be fine," she explained, earning a nod of approval from her friend.

Kabuto began to stand, beginning to follow after Sakura as they went to leave the room, but then felt his legs start to give way. Before he could fall, Sakura was quick to catch him, providing him the support he needed. "Ah... I'm sorry. I guess the adrenaline is dropping, and the lack of chakra is really getting to me," he explained softly.

"It's fine. Just lean on me," Sakura replied, "I got you."

"Thank you again, Sakura-san."

* * *

Sakura walked towards the bathroom, a set of clothing in hand. She could hear the shower running, but as she neared the door she heard the water shut off. For a moment, she hesitated to knock on the door, not wanting to intrude on her guest's privacy, then sighed as she turned herself to try and block her sight and knocked on the door.

"Kabuto? I have a set of clothes for you," she remarked, "Is it safe for me to open the door a crack?"

There was no reply at first, but Sakura could hear a bit of shuffling behind the door. A "yes" was finally uttered and Sakura opened the door just enough to slip her hand with the clothes inside.

"They're hand-me-downs from my dad; he gave them to me for cleaning around the house. There might be some stains on them as a result. Sorry about that," the rosette explained, turning her head towards the wall across from her, "Hopefully they'll fit. I have your clothes soaking; I'll get them washed up tomorrow for you."

She felt Kabuto lift the clothes from her hands. "Thank you," he replied, "I appreciate the hospitality."

She removed her hand from the opening, "I'll make us up some tea, so I'll be in the kitchen, okay?"

"I understand."

Sakura nodded, albeit to herself, as she started to close up the door. Suddenly she heard Kabuto call out her name, "Sakura-san."

She opened the door slightly again, still enough not to see anything, "Yes?"

There was no reply again, only a sigh, and Sakura's brow furrowed. "What is it?" she asked insistently.

"... Have you ever looked back on your past?"

"Huh?" Sakura remarked, "Well... yeah, I have. Everyone does at one point or another, I think. Why do you ask?"

"I... I really don't know."

Sakura looked towards the opening, not seeing Kabuto himself but could see his moonlit-illuminated shadow against the wall. She noticed how slumped over he appeared, his hair down from its usual ponytail. She could tell by his voice how tired he was, but his shadow told her there was something more than that right now. She frowned, her hand clenching by her side.

"We can talk more in a few minutes, okay?" Sakura stated, receiving no response verbally but could see his shadow nodding, closing the door behind her as she walked towards the kitchen.

About ten minutes later, just as Sakura was about to pour the water into cups, Kabuto emerged from the hallway. "They fit," he remarked of the gray long-sleeved shirt and pants, "And any stains are barely noticeable."

"That's good then," Sakura commented, "Guess I must have gotten them out pretty well, then."

Kabuto pulled back a chair at the table and sat down, not acknowledging Sakura's comment but she admittedly knew it didn't need a reply. Placing the tea bags into the cups, she placed one down in front of Kabuto, then one down in front of her chair, before finally sitting down herself. Silence encompassed them, other than a soft "thank you", as Sakura gently sipped at her drink and Kabuto stared into its content.

Sakura's emerald orbs looked over at Kabuto, noticing his sad, tired expression as he barely took a drink, placing his cup down gently as if it would break otherwise. She frowned again, not quite knowing why she hated this expression on him but not wanting to see it either. She lowered her cup back to the table, "Kabuto?"

"Oh..." the male responded, breaking out the reverie that he had placed himself in, "Yes, Sakura-san?"

"What did you mean earlier? When you asked about looking back at the past?" Sakura asked, her brow arched a bit as she inquired.

He didn't reply to her, but she could see his hands starting to shake around the cup. She leaned over the table, her hands resting on his own, ignoring the small jump that he did as she touched him. Kabuto's eyes darted to her, noticing Sakura's concerned gaze towards him, and he tried to suppress the feelings of surprise that was making his heartbeat race. For a second, he thought back to when he attempted to do this exact same gesture, yet stopped himself out of fear. Then again, he remembered, this was Sakura. There wasn't that many times he could recall now where she wasn't fearless, so this moment shouldn't be any different.

He sighed, looking back down at the tea cup. "Years ago, when someone died in my arms, I found it to be a funny thing," Kabuto began, "After all, I was a sadistic bastard; torturing the lives out of someone for the sake of my experiments was a game that I all too gladly played."

Sakura didn't say anything, but she didn't remove her hands from his. Golden eyes looked up at her again, unsure of what they'd see, but still saw that she was staring at him. He took in a deep breath before continuing, "I didn't care about the lives of those that I affected. They were pawns for me, toys to play with until they fulfilled their usefulness. But then... then when I was reawakened to my true self, I realized how cruel and wrong I really was. After the war, I even felt the need to remove myself from the world, even though it wouldn't have cleared me of my sins. But as much as I enjoyed taking lives away from others, I couldn't take my own."

He could feel the burning sting of tears around his eyes, his vision beginning to blur. "You already know of how I spent the years wandering the lands, trying to find some way to redeem myself for my sins, before coming back here to Konoha and taking over the orphanage. When Naruto-kun gave me the children to look after, I had told him of my fears of looking over so many of them. Still, he smiled at me and told me that he believed I could do it," he continued on, "So I did, and I found myself growing attached to them. Every day, I admired their growth, and basked in the love they had found for me. I felt like I was truly their father. I felt such happiness, even undeserved as it was."

Sakura could feel his hands shake more, the cup shaking along with it, hearing Kabuto's voice crack. "Now I lost seven of my children," he spoke nearly in a whisper, "I wonder if this is the punishment for all of the lives I had taken. Now that I had attachment to them, is taking them away from me what I deserved? I watched the lives of my victims leave this world; was watching my children fall to their death my divine punishment? Was my tears falling on my child's face as he closed his eyes for good my comeuppance for the laughter I emitted over the man that I had killed?"

Kabuto's tears fell upon the table, his body shuddering as he sobbed, "Is this how it feels to lose someone you've come to love? Is this pain what I was meant to feel? If it is, what can I do to make this feeling go away? This pain... this sadness...! I can't stand it!"

Sakura couldn't say a word, her mouth falling open as she continued to stare at Kabuto, her eyes widened at the outpouring of emotion that she was witnessing. Never in her life did she ever expect to see this man lament like this, but she knew in her life she hoped that she would never have to see this again. While she once considered him her enemy, she had slowly began to see him as a friend. She could feel his pain; she had this fear of one day learning that her precious Sarada being killed on a mission and brought back to her in a body bag, and hoped that it would never happen. This fear was a reality for Kabuto, and that made her chest deeply hurt.

She stood up from her seat and walked around to Kabuto's side, wrapping her arms around Kabuto's shoulders and resting her head upon his. Kabuto gasped in surprised, his body jumping at her embrace. "Sakura-san...?" he whispered, unsure of her motives.

"I'm sorry, Kabuto. I'm sorry that you had to experience this. I don't know how it feels to lose a child, just that I know I don't want to, and I'm so sorry that you had to. I truly am," Sakura explained, her voice soft as she tried to fight back her own tears, "But please don't look back like that. You're not that monster anymore. You're human; feeling this way about death, especially the death of your children, is a natural thing. You need to cry and let it out, and if you need to cry on me, then do so. I'm here for you."

Kabuto's mouth fell open, another gasp coming from his lips, his mouth then closing as he bit on his bottom lip, trying to stifle back the loud sobs that threatened to come forth. He grabbed at Sakura's arm that crossed his front, removing his glasses and setting them on the table as he buried his face into her arm. Sakura's gripped around him tightened, gently stroking his hair, as he continued to cry.

"I'm so sorry..."

* * *

"Mama, are you home yet?"

"In the kitchen, Sarada!"

The loud echoing of footsteps came through to the kitchen, until finally Sarada came into view. She saw her mother and Kabuto packing a basket with bento boxes and thermoses, her eyes namely darting towards the bespectical male. She ran to him, giving him a large hug, then pulling back to look up at him. "How's Ura doing? Mitsuki told me that Ura was one of the two that went with you to the hospital. Is he going to be alright?" the kunoichi asked rapidly.

Kabuto patted her head while nodding, "He should be alright, thanks to your mother. But we're going to be with him all night to make sure. Right now, he's asleep and stable, so we're taking the chance to get some supplies for the night."

Sarada smiled, happy to hear that news, "I'm so glad! Mama, is alright if I can visit Ura when he's awake?"

"I'm sure he'll love that," Sakura replied, smiling at her daughter before turning her attention towards Sasuke, "Sasuke-kun, thank you for offering to help. Is everything alright now?"

"Ah," Sasuke responded, "It's stable enough for them to take care things on their own. They're going to need more supplies."

Sakura nodded, closing the top of the basket, "I'll get some rounded up and delivered tomorrow. Alright, Kabuto, I think that's about done it."

"Okay. I'll take the basket and meet you outside. My apologies, Sasuke-kun, for ruining your first night home. I'm eternally grateful for your assistance," Kabuto replied, bowing towards the Uchiha.

Sasuke waved him off, silently accepting his apology, and watched as Kabuto grabbed the basket and walked past him towards the front door. He turned back towards Sakura, who stood mouthing out a list of things and motioning her fingers into forming air checkmarks. "Sarada, go and clean up, and get ready for bed," he said, patting his daughter's shoulder.

"Yes, Papa," Sarada replied, "Please make sure you get some rest too, Mama. And Kabuto-san, as well."

"We'll try," Sakura replied, hugging Sarada and giving her a kiss on her forehead, patting her shoulders as she walked out of the kitchen and leaving her parents alone.

The rosette went back to her checklist, nodding once she finished going through it. Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he watched her move towards the living room, grabbing two blankets that were placed over the edge of the couch. "Sakura, why are you going?" he asked, "He can take care of things alone."

"I don't think so, Sasuke-kun," she replied, "He used a lot of chakra tonight. It'd be better if we took shifts watching over Ura, instead of him taxing himself further."

She folded the blankets over her arms, "I'm sorry that we can't spend the night together. But I promise to make up for it while you're here, alright?"

"... It's strange that you actually care about him now, when you once hated him."

Sakura turned back towards her husband, staring straight at him. "I suppose it is strange for that reason, but he's not my enemy anymore. I'd like to consider him a friend," she replied, "How can I stand by and not do a thing when someone is suffering over the loss of their children, especially a friend?"

Sasuke said nothing, just shrugged his shoulders. Sakura sighed, a small smile forming on her face as she walked towards Sasuke, giving him a quick kiss on his lips, "It'll be fine. I'll see you sometime tomorrow morning."

* * *

The night went on and on. Kabuto and Sakura took their shifts watching over Ura, sleeping every couple of hours, eating when they were hungry, and sharing their notes of his condition as the hours ticked by. Before either of them had known it, the sun was about to start its rise, the soft speckles of light starting to come through the window.

Kabuto woke up to the brightening room, groaning as he opened his eyes, looking over towards the bed where Ura slept. Through his blurry vision, he could see Sakura's bright pink hair, and as it quickly improved he could see her figure. She was sitting on the floor, her head and arms resting on the edge of Ura's bed, one hand gently touching his. Kabuto was taken aback by the sleepy gesture; once again, Sakura's kindness had surprised him.

 _'This woman... how much care she holds for others never ceases to amaze me,'_ he remarked to himself, pulling back his blanket and standing up from the sofa chair that he had slept on, the pillow he had behind his head falling to the floor.

He walked over towards the sleeping rosette, kneeling down to her level. He saw how peaceful her face looked, her mouth slightly agape as she made small, quiet, sleepy noises. He nearly laughed at how relaxed she was, but kept his voice low. As gently as he could, he leaned her back against him, wrapping one arm under her legs and slowly lifting her up off of the floor. She groaned and stirred a bit, and Kabuto felt a wave of unease and regret settle into his stomach. She never opened her eyes, and he sighed as she settled down, happy that he didn't awake her and avoiding a potentially embarrassing situation.

He turned and brought her over to the chair, sitting her down gently and reaching for the pillow. He propped it behind her head, taking the blanket and covering her with it. He continued to stare at her for a moment as she released another small groan, turning her head and shifting herself slightly.

 _'Sakura-san... you're amazing. Despite everything I had done, you had it in your heart to not only accept me for my sins, but offered me a comfort that I never felt I deserved. You held me as I cried to you, and treated me as a human. Even now, I never thought that I'd ever be treated as a human by anyone, not even Urushi... I thought I'd always be a monster in your eyes, as I am in most others. But you don't. The way you are able to forgive and care for someone likes me fills me with feelings that I never thought I'd be allowed to experience.'_

He brushed a wisp of hair that fell in front of her face, gently grazing her skin with his fingertips. He saw her smile just slightly at the feeling, and he wondered then if she was dreaming about something good. After all, she had a lot of things to brighten her life: great friends, a lovely daughter, a caring husband...

Kabuto's gaze darkened at that last thought, his hand falling to his side. He felt a wave of envy and jealously cloud his mind, although he tried to shake the feeling away. Still, it remained, and he growled a bit at the frustration of it all.

 _'This isn't a proper feeling to have! But no matter how much I tried to fight it, it remains...'_

Shaking a hand through his hair, he sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before reopening them again, focusing again on the sleeping kunoichi.

 _'Sasuke-kun is lucky to have someone like you as his wife... More than ever, I find myself wondering if I was a better man, if I had been in your life since the beginning and never became your enemy...'_

He leaned down closer to her, his lips gently touching her forehead as his hand brushed away another wisp from her face. He moved back, noticing the smile had subconsciously grown wider.

 _'I wonder if you would've fallen in love with me... Because I think I might be for you.'_


	4. Emotion

Chapter 4: Emotion

"What do you mean you're leaving already!? You've only been home for three days! You promised Sarada you'd go to her exhibition!"

Sakura was livid as she watched her husband pack up his knapsack with clean sets of clothes. A few moments ago, she had came home to seeing a summons on the kitchen table from the Hokage's office next to a wrapped-up bento set, and promptly stomped off to their bedroom to confront him.

"There's been some activity near Suna that may be related to the Otsutsuki. There's uncertainty with the reports. I need to gather intel," Sasuke explained, never once looking up at Sakura, "I need to leave now. It'll be dark before long."

"You can't even wait for Sarada to come home to see her off and at least apologize for missing her exhibition? She's been anxious to show off her abilities to you since the exams!"

"I'm sorry. I can't risk it."

"Damn it, Sasuke-kun! I know what you're doing is important, but why the hell is it that every time we have the chance to be a family again you have to run out right away!?" Sakura screamed, grabbing at Sasuke's arm and trying to force him to look at her, "It's not fair that you keep doing this to us!"

Sasuke said nothing; instead, he sighed and put his bag down, wrapping his arm around Sakura's shoulders and pulling her into a hug. "I know," he said, "I'm sorry."

The rosette growled, wanting to keep fighting, but knew it was a fruitless effort. She sighed, burying her face into Sasuke's chest as she wrapped her arms around him. "It's not fair, Sasuke-kun... We don't deserve this," she whispered.

"I know."

"Just... just come back home to us safely and soon, okay?"

"Yes."

The two parted ways, Sakura rubbing the tears away from her eyes, "I'll tell Sarada when she gets home. But you better make sure to apologize to her profusely when you get back!"

"I will," Sasuke acknowledged, grabbing his bag again and slinging it over his shoulder. He leaned down to place a kiss on Sakura's forehead before leaving her alone in their bedroom.

* * *

"I see... I'm sorry about all of that, Sakura-san."

"It's fine... I'm just so frustrated with it all! I don't even care about the fact that we didn't really have the chance to go out and do anything on our own, but the fact that he keeps doing this to Sarada when all she wants is to spend time with her father keeps makes me upset. Yes, she's a strong, young lady, but her face when I told her that her father left without a goodbye or anything practically broke my heart."

Sakura sighed, taking an angry bite of her bento, "It's just... it's not fair."

Kabuto nodded his head in understanding. The two were sitting together in the hospital room Ura was recovering in, eating a lunch that Urushi had made for them. Ura had yet to awaken, but had shown several signs that he would make a recovery thanks to the work that the two medics had done. While Sakura couldn't devote her entire time for him, Kabuto and Urushi had taken shifts in being by his side, with the rosette joining them between other patients. In the meantime, with special permission from Naruto, Sarada and her team had been spending the last few days at the orphanage, helping out with anything they needed while they recovered from the terrible accident.

"Well, enough of my ranting... how are everyone taking things?" Sakura asked.

Kabuto sighed, "Not very well... we had the funeral yesterday, but since the accident everyone has been really distraught. I wonder if the children don't quite understand the feelings of loss and mourning. They're far different than they were. They have a grasp on emotions, far more than they did when they arrived, but this is something that we couldn't prepare them for."

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he continued, "I don't know what to do to help ease their minds and help them cope. I have no such experiences in this. I... I feel like a failure of a father, with nothing but words that may feel empty to them."

"I see..." Sakura remarked quietly, taking a bite of her lunch, the chopsticks lingering on her lips.

She could understand their plight, and Kabuto's loss of ideas to comfort them. She knew firsthand how the clones were used in their past, and how death might had been seen as something not to be concerned with, but they were like young children with a developing mind, and with that, developing emotions; it's no surprise that they were struggling with the idea of losing a family member and how to properly mourn for them. She thought back on the conversation from the previous night, and realized that Kabuto may not know how to cope with such feelings as well.

 _'There has to be something I can do for them... but what?'_ she pondered, looking out the window.

Kabuto noticed her wandering eyes and raised a brow, "Sakura-san? What is it?"

"I'm just thinking about what can be done."

"I see... I'm sorry; I don't mean to be a burden on your thoughts."

"You're not, Kabuto," Sakura chided, "I want to be able to help you all get through this. I just don't know how either."

The two began to fall back into silence until the sound of a light moan broke the air. They turned towards the bed, noticing Ura's fingers starting to move. Kabuto gasped, his bento falling to the floor as he rushed to its side, "Ura! Ura, can you hear me?"

Slowly, Ura's eyes opened, and he could see Kabuto's figure coming into view. "F...father...?" he croaked out, "Mmm... I... I don't feel very... good."

"That's understandable... You've been unconscious for the last few days, and you were really hurt," Kabuto explained, wrapping Ura's hand with his own.

Sakura nodded, coming over to Kabuto's side and smiling down at the child, "We're glad you're alive, that's the most important thing. And, with the two of us working on you, you'll be back up to running and playing in no time!"

"... Uchiha-san..." Ura said faintly, a small smile coming to his lips, "Sarada-chan... is she here too?"

"No, she's not. But I'll make sure she comes over and visit you as soon as she can," the rosette promised, "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you again."

"Alright," he said, still smiling.

"Ura, I'm sorry," Kabuto suddenly said, "I'm so sorry that you were hurt, and that seven of your brothers... I couldn't save all of you. I couldn't keep our family together."

He gripped Ura's hand harder, his body quaking, "I know you may not understand, and I'm so sorry that I likely can never make you understand this. I'm sorry, Ura... I'm so sorry..."

"Kabuto..." Sakura whispered sadly.

Ura didn't say anything at first, but instead he smiled, "Don't be sad, Father... It'll be okay... Uchiha-san said so... I'll be playing again soon. And then my brothers won't be sad anymore either..."

The silver-haired male was taken aback by his child's words, his eyes widening behind his frames and the tears that built up flowed down his cheeks. "Oh, Ura... I'm so sorry," he whispered, lowering his head as he let out huge sobs of happiness and relief.

"Don't cry, Father... Uchiha-san..." Ura said softly, looking up at the rosette with a tired plea.

"Let him cry, Ura. These are tears of joy," she replied softly, kneeling down and wrapping one arm around Kabuto's shoulders and the other resting on their joined hands, "You can cry too. It's alright to cry."

Ura looked down at their hands together, then to Kabuto. He could see just the faint traces of a smile on his lips. He turned towards Sakura, watching as she smiled and nodded, a small tear falling down her face as well. His face scrunched up, his nose began to feel a bit runny, and soon he felt his face become wet.

"... Father..."

* * *

Sakura wandered through the market of Konoha, her mind torn on its focus. She came to pick up a few things she needed for her dinner that night, but also kept replaying visions of the afternoon in the hospital. She left a little bit ago, with Urushi coming in to watch over Ura and Kabuto fast asleep after his emotional episode, Sakura being told that Sarada and Mitsuki were watching over the orphanage until Kabuto's return. After everything that had occurred, she wanted to do something, _anything_ , to ease their pain.

She looked around the market, trying to find her ingredients and some sort of inspiration. As she wandered, she didn't realize how much of her focus had became on her thoughts that she didn't realize where she was going until she felt a huge bump against her legs. "Oof!" came out the cry, followed by the sound of a small body falling to the ground.

The rosette broke out from her stupor and realized what happened: she had accidentally ran into a young girl. "Oh my, I'm so sorry! Are you alright, little one?" she exclaimed, kneeling down to help.

"I'm sorry, miss!" the child exclaimed, "I'm okay! Oh, my balloon!"

"Balloon?" Sakura asked, looking up to the sky to see a red balloon flying high up into the sky, "Oh! I'm so sorry! I'll see if I can catch it!"

"It's okay!" the child said, "I was going to tie it around my brother's tree, but maybe the gods will make sure he can actually play with it."

"Your brother's tree?" the rosette asked again, helping to brush off the dirt from the child's clothes.

She nodded, "Yep. My brother passed away a year ago, and today was his birthday. I got a balloon to tie around the tree we planted for him, but I think it might be better this way. I know his spirit is up in Heaven, and now he can get the balloon and play with it and think of me."

Sakura was taken aback by the young girl's cheerful story. She couldn't be more than seven or eight, easily looking the same age as what the clones could pass for as well, yet her way of dealing with such a death was so bright and understanding. Sakura smiled, her mind racing with new ideas.

"Thank you. You gave me such a wonderful idea just now. I'm really grateful to you."

"Oh! You're welcome, miss! Well, I need to be heading home now! Bye bye!"

The child skipped off, not at all fazed by the encounter, waving at Sakura as she walked away. The rosette waved back, then turned towards the direction of the Yamanaka Floral Shop, knowing exactly what she was going to do.

 _'This will be perfect!'_

* * *

"Sakura-san? What is all of this?"

Kabuto's brow perched as Sakura dropped bags of seeds, balloons, paper slips, and ribbons all onto a large table, some of the contents spilling onto the floor. The rosette fluttered about the table, trying to separate out things into their proper types.

"This is going to be a way to help the children mourn."

"What?"

Sakura turned towards Kabuto, wiping some sweat from her brow, "Yesterday, when I was in the market, I accidentally ran into a little girl. She was holding a balloon, but lost it when she fell. When I offered to get it back for her, she told me that it was alright, that she was going to tie it around a tree her family planted to mourn the loss of her baby brother, but she said that now her brother's spirit could play with the balloon. It really gave me an idea on how that could maybe help out with the children here."

She smiled brightly, "Each child will get a balloon and blow it up. We'll put seeds inside of each balloon, as well as a special message for their siblings tied to the ribbons. Then, all together, we'll release them to the sky. As the balloons travel into the skies, they'll surely pop and when they do, the seeds will fall to the ground, bringing forth new life. Oh, and I already arranged it with Sarada and her team to go out in the forests tomorrow to help with picking up any of the balloons pieces they find. Sounds like a pretty cool idea, right?"

Kabuto stared at Sakura for a few moments, looking down at the table at the contents strewn about, then back at Sakura. "You're... doing all of this for us?" he asked quietly, "For... me?"

"Well, yeah... why wouldn't I?" Sakura answered coolly.

Again, he was stunned by the kunoichi's kindness. He watched as she smiled at him, so warmly and sweetly, and he felt the feelings of happiness and guilt fill his chest. _'Why do you treat me with such gentleness, Sakura-san?'_ he asked himself, _'A traitorous person like me, that doesn't deserve something like this, you treat me as though I matter and have purpose. Why is that, Sakura-san? Why is it that, once again, I find myself...'_

He stopped himself right there; he knew what he wanted to say again, but he refused to allow him to feel that way right now and risk causing his friend discomfort or concern. Instead, he smiled and gave her a small bow, "Thank you, so much, Sakura-san... I don't even know how to even portray in words the gratitude I feel right now."

Sakura waved her hands in a nervous jitter, "Come on, Kabuto! Don't do that! I'm grateful that I can help! So how about we get things started? I'm sure they're all curious about what's going on."

"You're right, I'm sure they are," Kabuto agreed, straightening himself upright then walking towards the door, "Aniki, gather the children up in the courtyard please! We have something for them!"

* * *

The bespectacled male couldn't believe the sight in front of him. For the last week, all he had seen from the children was sad expressions and tears. Now today, in the glowing sunlight in the courtyard, he could see happy smiles and hear the sounds of chatter and laughter. It was almost amazing how well they were understanding and enjoying the idea of being able to send up their goodbyes and wishes to their brothers. He could feel his heartbeat racing ever so slightly with the good feelings that threatened to overwhelm him.

Sakura stood beside him, watching as they helped each other with the balloons. She laughed as she watched two of the children try to tie up a balloon, but accidentally letting it go and sent it flying nearly halfway across the courtyard, causing them to give chase. The looks on their faces, from shock to happy, also filled her heart with joy. _'I'm so glad this is working! They all seem so happy,'_ she thought, turning her head to watch Kabuto's reactions.

The sight of him nearly caused her to lose her breath. The smile he had was brilliant, the sunlight illuminating his scars and skin like a pale ghost, the sunlight dancing off of his glasses and his golden eyes every bit as playful and joyous as his smile. She recalled the first time she saw him, a few months ago now, on how he looked then and how he appeared to her now. At that point, she felt anger try to boil up in her, but this time she felt something she couldn't quite place. She could feel her face warming up a bit more than it was before, but that had to be because of the sun. Yes, that was it, she rationed to herself, the sun was on directly beaming on her face. That's also why her heartbeat started to pick up a little more; she was just getting warm and her body was reacting.

She shook her head, turning away before Kabuto could notice she was staring at him. _'What the freaking hell was that, Sakura? It's Kabuto; there's no reason for you to be feeling... whatever this is!'_ she chided herself, forcing herself to calm down and bringing her attention back to the children.

"They're having so much fun," Kabuto remarked wistfully.

"Yeah, they are," Sakura replied.

"It's all thanks to you, Sakura-san. Truly, I don't have the words to describe how grateful I am to you. They're smiling, laughing, playing again... it's all because of you," he continued, turning towards the rosette and gently resting his hand on top her own, "Thank you, Sakura-san. Thank you for showing such care towards my children, and towards me."

A small shock went up Sakura's spine as they touched, something that caused her face to warm up once again, "Y-you don't have to keep thanking me, Kabuto. It's fine!"

Kabuto smiled, then his attention turned back towards the children as Urushi and one of them came up towards them. "Looks like everyone is ready," Urushi commented.

"Excellent. Well, then, children, let's all stand together. Come, come!" Kabuto remarked, standing up, grabbing the hand of the boy that excitedly skipped back towards the crowd, practically pulling his father along with him.

Sakura laughed again at the sight, watching as the children all fought to be closest to their fathers. Her eyes stayed mostly on Kabuto, watching how he smiled, how he laughed, how much his eyes twinkled with the sunlight. Her mind began to wander, _'He looks so much at peace. He is nothing like the evil bastard he once was; he's seems so human now. So relaxed, so cheerful, so... amazing...'_

"Sakura-san, come join us!"

The calling of her name broke her from her reverie. She shook her head slightly and stood up, walking over to the crowd. "Ryo made you up a balloon as well," Urushi commented, motioning the boy to hand Sakura the balloon, "All you need to do is write your well-wishes."

"Aww, thank you Ryo," Sakura complimented, taking the balloon and a marker from another child.

She stared at the tag, thinking about what she wanted to say. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, waiting for her to start to write, making her feel silly and nervous. Casually, her green eyes turned towards Kabuto, who stood close to her still smiling away, and strangely it was enough to help the rosette calm down and think. As quickly as she could, she wrote down her wish on the tag, closing up the marker and handing it back to the child. "Alright, I'm ready!"she exclaimed.

Kabuto nodded, "Alright, children, on the count of three, we release our balloons to the skies. Let our wishes for our brothers reach them and make them smile. One..."

"Two..." Urushi chimed in.

"Three!" Sakura finished off.

With that, the sky suddenly filled up with colorful balloons, followed by the sounds of excited squeals and whispered good-byes. The children stared, waved, and tried to chase the balloons as they flew out of the courtyard and away from the orphanage, taking with them their sadness and grief.

"Can't believe how all of them were hiding in their rooms just an hour ago," Urushi commented, "Their energy now is almost contagious."

"Yes it is. They make me want to run around with them and act like a child again," Kabuto added, "But for the moment, we should try and get things cleaned up so it's less of a mess we have to take care of for dinner time."

"I'll help," Sakura stated, following after Urushi as he made his way back towards the tea room.

Kabuto's gaze lingered on them for a moment, then he looked upwards, the balloons now becoming more and more like colorful specks against the blue skies. He then chuckled, looking down with a small smile and pushing his glasses up on his nose, before turning around and following after them.

 _'Please be happy, so your father never loses his smile again.'_

* * *

The hours went by and it soon had become sunset. The children, wiped out from playing with the rest of the balloons Sakura had brought, waited tiredly for dinner to finish. Urushi watched over it, stirring things in between reading pages in his book, and Kabuto had retired to his room to finish up a project he was working on for when Ura was allowed to come home. Sakura, in the meantime, kept conversation with Urushi until she noticed the time and prepared herself to leave and head back home. She didn't want to leave without mentioning it to Kabuto, so she asked for help in locating his room.

Noticing the door was closed, she gently knocked on it with the back of her hand, "Kabuto? I'm about to head out, so I just wanted to say good-bye."

She waiting for a few moments for a response, she received none. One brow raised, she knocked again, "Kabuto?"

Curiously, she opened the door, peering inside. It was a small room, with a bed lined up against a window, a small table and chair in the middle of the room, and a short, 3-shelved bookcase next to the wall that helped to form the headboard for the bed. There was a lamp on the other side of the bed on a mini table, not currently turned on, with what looked like one of Kabuto's robes laying on the floor next to it. Upon the bed, she could see Kabuto was laying down, fast asleep with what she could guess was the project he was working on. She stepped inside, closing the door just a bit, and approached him quietly.

The project appeared to be some sort of pillow or a piece of clothing – it was hard to tell by just the fabric itself – in a bright green color. The largest majority of the fabric was on the floor, with a small bit against the bed frame, a trail of thread and the needle held very loosely in Kabuto's hand. As gently as she could, Sakura removed the project from his grasp and set it neatly on the table, then turned back towards the sleeping man.

She took notice of his expression. He still wore his glasses, the frames slightly askew on his face, his mouth was slightly agape with quiet, sleepy noises emulating from them. He looked like he was perhaps dreaming, judging by the small twitches in his cheeks and brows. She tried her best not to giggle even slightly at the sight; there was something about how relaxed he was in this moment that made her want to laugh. Not in a way to make fun of him, but in a way that made her really happy.

 _'Each time I see you, I'm really surprised by how much you've changed. The Kabuto I used to know was never this caring, this sweet, this happy... and it's times like this where I'm glad that I took the chance to get to know you, to understand you, to see this side of you.'_

Kabuto shifted slightly, making a small snorting noise. Sakura froze for a moment, afraid that she might had done something to wake him up and was worried what he might say about her being in his room, but that subsided when she noticed he didn't wake up. She sighed very softly, glad that she avoided an awkward situation. Still, it was enough to make her want to hurry up and leave.

 _'Guess I'll just tell Urushi-san to tell him good-bye for me,'_ she thought as she started to turn around, _'You know... I probably should try and remove his glasses real fast though. They already look pretty bent as they are; sleeping on them will probably risk breaking them.'_

As quietly and carefully as the kunochi could, she leaned over and lifted the frames from his face, putting them on top of the bookshelf. As she did, she was a bit awed at his face without them. She can't really recall ever seeing him without them; it was a little like seeing another part of Kabuto in a different way.

 _'I wonder how his eyes look without the lenses... how deep and soft they might be,'_ she wondered, gently brushing away a wisp of hair from Kabuto's face before she could even realize what she was doing.

Without warning, Kabuto's hand wrapped itself around Sakura's wrist, pulling her down onto the bed with him. She let out a loud squeal, shocked by the sudden move. "K-Kabuto!" she yelled, but he didn't respond to her call.

His arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her close to him. Sakura placed her arms on his chest, trying to push herself away. Her face became flushed with slight frustration and high embarrassment, her eyes darting up to look at Kabuto with furrowed brows. She noticed, however, that he was still sleeping. _'He must have reacted during his dream... Oh Kami, what the hell do I do!?'_ she asked herself, filled with regret of not leaving when she told herself to do so.

She didn't want to hurt him, nor did she want to wake him up either... torn on what to do, she continued to try and wiggle her way out of his grasp. With each move she did, it was almost like he held her tighter, like he was desperate to hold her close and not let her go. He groaned with some of her movement, although she wasn't sure what those noises were in response of.

"Sakura."

Hearing her name made her freeze; that was the first time she ever heard him call out her name without the honorific. It was throaty and sleepy, but there was something about him saying her name that stirred up a strong feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Sakura," Kabuto said again, "Please..."

She looked up to see his face twisted slightly, as if he was having a nightmare, his breathing sped up and coming out in quiet, tiny pants. Something about her, but what... "Kabuto...?" she whispered.

"Don't... leave me..."

Sakura didn't make a move at first; what kind of nightmare was he having? Her heart beat raced faster, her stomach turning with concern and worry. She moved one arm so her hand to gently caress his face. "I'm not going anywhere, Kabuto," she whispered, "I'm here. It's okay."

"Don't leave..."

"I won't."

"Sakura..."

"I'm here, Kabuto. I'm right here."

Her words seemed to have started to settle in, as she watched as his face relaxed and his breathing started to turn back to normal. She sighed, smiling that it seemed like the worst was over, her hand calmly brushing his cheek as another way to reassure him. He shifted, his head leaning more forward towards hers, until their foreheads met. Sakura could feel the coolness of his skin against her own, although it only proved to her how warm her face was.

Suddenly, he leaned forward and his lips touched hers, shocking Sakura with an unexpected kiss. She froze at the contact, her mind not able to process what he was doing for a moment, before her instinct finally kicked in. She pushed against him hard, breaking herself out of his grasp and falling to the floor. Kabuto snorted, coughing at the sharp force against his chest. "Ugh... what the hell was that? I thought I had stated- Sakura-san?" he said through his fit, "What are you doing here? You look really red."

Sakura's breath was heavy, her face was bright red, and her stomach was in knots. _'What the hell was that!? What the fuck can I even say to this!?'_ her mind screamed at her, trying to figure out what it was that just transpired. "Sakura-san?" Kabuto asked again, "What's wrong?"

"I was... I was..." the rosette stuttered, trying to think of an answer, "Well, I was about to leave, but didn't want to go without saying goodbye. I saw that you were sleeping and I was just going to leave you a note, but... but I tripped on the table and fell into you. I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you up so rudely!"

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Sakura-san! I didn't mean to fall asleep; please don't feel like you need to apologize. I was the rude one to not come out and send you off," Kabuto replied, "Especially with all you've done for us today."

"C-come on, stop that! Why wouldn't I help a friend?" she asked, waving her hands in front of her, feeling a rush of relief that he bought her lie, "And I don't think you're rude; I know how tired you are. Well... I should go now, before Sarada gets home. Bye Kabuto!"

"Please be safe going home; farewell, Sakura-san," he replied, barely able to stand up before Sakura practically sprinted out of the door and closing it strongly behind her.

With it closed, he began to think about what had gone on. _'I know she's lying to me... but what had happened to make her react like this? Did I... Did I do something in my sleep to upset her?'_ he thought, his hand moving to push up his glasses and noticing that they weren't on his face.

He looked around, trying to figure out where they might have gone, finally seeing them folded neatly on top of the bookcase. "Did she...?" he whispered, grabbing them and putting them back on, "Did she take them off of me?"

Looking over at the door, he caught sight of the project he was doing for Ura sitting on the table, "I didn't place it there... She must have done so. Ugh... How long was she here while I slept?"

He shook his head, trying to think about what he might had done to upset her, his hand resting upon his chin, placing two fingers upon his lips. _'What did I do...?'_

On the other side of the door, Sakura leaned against it, still trying to catch her breath, her face still hot and her heart feeling like it would come out of her chest. _'What happened in there!? Why did Kabuto grab at me like that? Why did hold me so tightly? Why did he say my name like that? Why... why did he kiss me?'_ her mind kept asking, but there wasn't a single response that had a logical answer.

Her fingers went to her lips, tracing over them, still feeling the touch of his lips against her own. It was strong and needy, but there was a feeling that Sakura really didn't understand its reason for being there... it was a feeling that she felt sometimes when Sasuke kissed her, a feeling of care beyond just friendship. She shook her head of that, _'No, there's no way that can be! There's no way Kabuto would feel something like that for me. That must have just been a mistake. Yeah, that's it! My brain is playing a trick on me!'_

Still, her fingers and the touch lingered. Sakura's eyes closed slightly, _'His lips... were really soft. I never imagined they ever would be. If it wasn't so sudden, then maybe I...'_

Shaking her head again, the rosette backed away from the door and began to walk as fast as she could away from his room, away from the orphanage, away from him... she really needed some fresh air and some time to think.


	5. Running Towards Sunset

Chapter 5: Running Towards Sunset

Kabuto was distraught, but he didn't allow himself to show it towards his children or Urushi. It had been two months since the day they released the balloons, two months since he last saw Sakura's charming face. Even now, he still couldn't figure out what had happened that afternoon in his room, what was the true reason behind her flustered appearance, and not seeing her to try and discuss it has brought his heart much pain. He felt as though she was avoiding him; during the remaining weeks Ura remained in the hospital, she never appeared when he was in the room. On the day he was released, Ura explained that she had visited in the hour before Urushi brought him home, wishing him well and promising that she and Sarada would visit him soon. It has been three weeks since then, and yet Sakura never appeared.

It wasn't just the frustration of the situation that pained him; just not seeing her at all stabbed at him over and over like a knife. He wanted to see her smile, gaze into her emerald eyes, watch as the wind gently moved her beautiful pink hair, hear her laugh and say his name... with each passing day, he missed her. With each passing night, he looked towards the sky, gazing at the stars, wondering if she was staring up at them as he was. He wished every day for her to come up to the gates of the orphanage, and was downtrodden when she never came over the horizon. It made his heart ache, his soul weary.

 _'I miss her... I love her. Sakura...'_

* * *

Sakura was torn, frustrated, and unable to concentrate on her work. It had been two months since that awkward incident with Kabuto, since the moment when he unexpectedly kissed her. Try as she might, she couldn't push it from her mind, and to that extent she did everything she could to try and avoid him. While Ura was still in the hospital, every time she saw that Kabuto was visiting, she would make sure to sneak away before he could see her. She still checked in on him, of course, but only when he was alone or when Urushi was visiting. On the day he was released, she told him that she would visit, along with Sarada, but she hadn't kept to her word in the three weeks that had followed.

Yet, despite her confusion, she was frustrated at something else: the painful feeling of loneliness that threatened to overwhelm her. She realized very recently that it was her attachment to Kabuto. How he would smile at her, the conversation they would have for hours on end, how he would look at her with such joy and care, it all became a part of her that going all of this time without seeing him drowned her with sadness. She wanted to see his golden eyes sparkle like the sun, his smile warmly greeting her, hearing him laugh and say her name. She mused over that, her name... she found that she wanted to hear him say it again without the honorific, but why she still couldn't figure that particular part out. Still, she wanted to hear it. She wanted to see him, she wanted to stand by his side. From her desk, she looked out at the sky, the sun at its noon peak, and she growled as she closed up her files in a fit of misplaced rage.

 _'I miss him so much. But after what happened... could I even look at him the same way? Kabuto...'_

She looked back out of the window, towards where the orphanage would be, and sighed heavily. She flashed back to what happened, but what came to her head was not the kiss, but the moments before that. When he was calling out to her, his voice as desperate as his grasp around her frame, and the words she spoke to him as he pleaded with her. "I'm here... it's okay... I'm not going anywhere"...

A wave of determination began to fill her chest; shaking her head, she stood up from her desk, grabbing the files and slamming them into her cabinet, then rushing out of the door, running down the halls as fast as she could.

* * *

Kabuto sighed, putting the watering can down near the front gate, his work on taking care of the flowers and greenery done. He looked towards the horizon one more time, for the umpteenth time that he couldn't recall, hoping that he would see Sakura make an appearance coming towards him, but once again seeing nothing. He frowned, his chest feeling heavy with upset and a crushing feeling of loneliness. He shook his head, sighing once again, as he made his way to go back inside. "Maybe tomorrow," he muttered to himself in defeat.

"Kabuto!"

The sound of his name made him freeze, and rapidly he turned around. Although slightly shadowed, he could make out the familiar figure, and his eyes widened behind his lenses. His mouth fell open, and his heart began to beat out of his chest. "S-sakura-san...!" he stammered, his legs at first hesitant but soon they began to move, running towards her as fast as he could.

Sakura was out of breath, but the feeling was worth it upon seeing Kabuto and him coming towards her. She smiled brightly and kept running, only stopping when the two were mere steps from each other, both panting heavily but both beaming.

"Sakura-san... I'm so glad you're here. It's been too long. I thought after what happened, I... Sakura-san, I've missed you."

"I told you, didn't I? I wouldn't leave you. I just... Well, I got scared and I freaked out."

Kabuto's brow arched, "Scared? Of what? Of... me?"

The rosette shook her head, "No, not of you... I guess you didn't realize what happened?"

"No," he replied, "What did I do? Please, what did I do?"

She bit on her bottom lip, debating on how exactly she should answer. "In your sleep, you grabbed me. You pulled me down and held me. And you called out to me, asking me not to leave you," she explained, "I tried to comfort you, telling you I wouldn't, and you held me tighter and I got scared of what was happening. So that's when I pushed you."

Saffron eyes widened, then the male lowered his head, "I did that...? Oh, Sakura-san, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that to you. I don't even remember doing such things. I hope you can forgive me... I didn't mean to cause you any sort of fear or discomfort, and I'm so sorry that I did so without realizing it."

Sakura shook her head, placing a hand on his cheek and lifting his head up so she could look directly at him. "It's okay! I'm the one that reacted strangely. I'm the one that couldn't comfort you, and I'm sorry that it took me two months before I came here to try and make it right," she explained, "I hope you can forgive me."

Kabuto chuckled, smiling as he gently wrapped his arms around Sakura's frame, "Of course. Thank you, Sakura-san."

She was a bit taken aback by the hug, but quickly relaxed, wrapping her arms around him and returning his affections, "Thank you too, Kabuto."

 _'It's not the truth, but that's something we can discuss later. For now... I just want this.'_

* * *

For hours, the two adults chatted away, catching up on two months of conversation. Some of it over tea, some of it in the courtyard as they watched Ura's progress as he played alongside his brothers, and some while helping with preparing dinner with Urushi. They went on and on, laughing and smiling and enjoying each other's company, not even realizing how much time had gone past. Before either of them knew it, it was sunset and time for Sakura to head on home. However, unlike other days, Kabuto asked if he could walk home with her, something that she, surprisingly, was eager to take him up on.

Instead of the way Sakura knew to take, Kabuto led her up a path that brought them to a cliffside overlooking Konoha, stunning the rosette with a beautiful view of the sunset. She stared at the beautiful colors in awe, "Wow... it's so beautiful."

Kabuto agreed, although admittedly it wasn't the sunset he was looking at. "Yes, very much so," he commented, then looking out towards the horizon, "I discovered this path when I first came back to Konoha. Before I went to the Hokage's office to make my plea. Seeing the view here, seeing how the village had been built up over the years... it really hit me hard. Since then, I've often come here to reflect upon my actions, my regrets... and how much I see that my life has a chance to be something far more than what I originally had meant it to be."

Sakura glanced over at him, watching him as he stretched then sit down on a large, flat-top rock, his gaze still on the sunset. She smiled softly, following his lead and sitting down on the ground next to him, her right shoulder leaning gently against his legs. "I'm glad that you came back," she remarked, her voice a near whisper, "Truly, I'm glad that you did."

He looked down at her, mouth partly agape, then chuckled and turned back his attention. "I am as well," he replied, "To have my brother, the children, a true home, a purpose... it's more than I could've ever asked for."

He looked down at Sakura again, _'And now you... I wish I could have you by my side forever, for you to be mine. If I had one more wish, one more allowed desire... it'd be to have you.'_

They sat in silence for several minutes, their focus mostly on the sunset, but when they were surely not being noticed they would look at one another, their minds racing with different thought... What was she thinking about? Was he looking at her? Each asked themselves questions but received no answers.

"I wonder if Sarada had seen the letter yet," the rosette eventually mumbled.

"Letter?" Kabuto asked, hearing her soft inquiry.

"Yes. I received notice from Sasuke-kun this morning. He should be returning in a week. I hope that it's true... it's been so long since he's returned home. But I'm a bit scared that it won't happen, you know?"

"I see," he replied, his tone sad but it went unnoticed.

The thought of Sasuke's return caused him a sense of pain. While he was happy for Sakura to have her husband home again – even if it was just for a little bit – it filled him with jealousy and envy. The thought of Sakura within the Uchiha's arms – being held by him, eating with him, kissing him, making love to him – it all but clouded the bespectacled male's mind with the rage and desire that he wanted to be the one that the rosette loved, he wanted to be by her side always and not at short intervals. As he watched her wistfully stare out at the sunset, he wished more than ever to take her hand in his, to pull her up and bring her close to him, and tell and show her exactly how he felt...

But he knew he couldn't do that; no matter how much he desired her, her happiness is what he wished for her the most, and if that happiness was with Sasuke, then that would be his wish for her as well. Instead, he watched as Sakura stood up, brushing the dirt from her clothes. "Well, I should be heading home. Thank you, Kabuto, for bringing me here. I really appreciated this... and everything else," she said, suddenly feeling sheepish as she spoke the last part.

Kabuto shook his head before standing up from the rock, "No... Thank you, Sakura-san, for coming back."

Something about the way he said those words – hushed and meaningful, but also passionate and necessary – made Sakura's heart race. It startled her but also strangely excited her in how he spoke. It reminded her of the tone he had as he slept and dreamed, as he held her, as he kissed her... her stomach turned, but it wasn't in an unpleasant way. She didn't know how to describe it, however, and her mind tried to quickly ignore it as to not alarm her friend... that's what Kabuto was to her, right? Just her friend...?

"O-of course," she finally replied, her voice in a small stutter before she composed herself better, "I'll come back to check on Ura sometime next week, as well."

"I look forward to it, Sakura-san. Perhaps bring Sarada-san with you as well?" Kabuto asked, receiving a firm nod in return.

With a wave, Sakura turned around and made her way back down the path, leaving Kabuto there to watch her. As her figure approached the trees and overbrush that covered the main path, he felt a strong wave of emotion come to him, with the need to cry out to her and tell her, here and now, the feelings he had. Gritting his teeth and balling up his fists, he tried to suppress it, but even with every bit of his determination at hand, he couldn't control the motion of his words escaping his mouth...

"Sakura!"

With that call, the rosette was startled, stopping in her tracks, her heart skipping a beat. _'My name... he said it without the honorific... he called for me,'_ her thoughts raced, her body slowly turning around to face him again. "Yes, Kabuto?" she said, feeling like it was almost too soft but he could hear her as clear as day.

There was silence at first, allowing Sakura to scan him... clenched fists, rigid form, brows furrowed and his mouth twisted into a strained frown... it was almost disturbing to see him in this expression, but yet all she could wonder was what was the cause of it? She wished he would finally speak, finally tell her what was wrong, to tell her...

"I... I just wanted to say that I... I hope that Sasuke-kun comes home to you," he finally spoke, his voice grimaced at the words that came out. _'That's not what I wanted to say... but I can't say them to you. Not now, and maybe not ever.'_

The rosette's shoulders slumped with a mixture of relief and disappointment. "Oh... thank you Kabuto, for that," she replied, ready to turn back around again. _'That was all...? He could've-'_

"But if he doesn't... don't be afraid to come to me; I'll make sure that you aren't alone and will do my best to make you smile," he added firmly, "I promise." _'But I can do this... I'll be your shoulder, your rock, I'll comfort you and take care of you... this will be the way I can love you.'_

She gasped, her eyes widening, her stomach quaking as well, her heart beating loudly in her ears. "O-okay... thank you Kabuto, for that as well... I really appreciate that, so very much," she replied, "I'm truly thankful."

"Of course, Sakura-san."

"Please! … Um, you can call me Sakura, if you want to. I don't mind at all..."

There was no reply to that, only a stunned nod, and with that Sakura quickly turned and ran into the greenery and down the path towards Konoha, unable to control her breathing, her heart rate, her heated face, her thoughts...

 _'Kabuto... Kabuto... he's saying that as a friend. He's just my friend! But how he says it... no, he can't be actually... in love with me? No, that's stupid, Sakura! There's no way that's possible... right? No, that has to be right... Right!?'_

That night, as she laid in bed, her mind continued to race, wondering what was happening with him, with them, with her. And as she finally drifted off to sleep, the last image to come to her mind was that of a male's strong arms around her, the feel of his breath upon her lips, the whisper of her name, and finally the touch... and how, for once, it wasn't Sasuke's face that she saw as she started to dream.

* * *

A week had gone by and Sakura was excited as she could be. Today her husband, her Sasuke, was going to come home! Granted, she wish it could've been a more family event, but Sarada wasn't going to be returning from a mission until tomorrow, but in the end that was okay... that meant that the two adults could spend the evening alone, just the two of them. The thought made the rosette so giddy she could barely concentrate on her tasks for the day. From accidentally breaking a cup to knocking over a stand of fruit at the market, Sakura was scatterbrained, flustered, and happy as hell.

It was more than enough to push aside her conflicting and confusing feelings for the silver-haired man that has haunted her dreams, even for a little while.

The hours ticked by and Sakura kept busy. Cleaning the house up and down, washing and freshening up the sheets and towels, working all day on all of Sasuke's favorite dishes... she did everything she could to make everything sparkle, shine, and perfect. All for Sasuke, all for when he walks through that door and finally tells her that he's home.

As the morning turned into the midday, and the midday into the evening, Sakura waited. She stared at the clock, re-cleaned things she already touched up, fussed over and over again about her appearance, anything she could do to keep her mind off of her anxious stomach. However, as the food grew cold and the clock rang each hour down – 5... 6... 7... 8... – the more she began to worry and wonder if he was ever coming home.

As the clock turned to 8:23, the pitter-patter sound of rain hitting the roof began to echo. Looking out of the window as it poured, Sakura sighed. _'A sign of my mood,'_ she thought unpleasantly, going back to the kitchen to reheat the tea she had made hours ago.

The rain continued on and on, even as the 10pm hour approached, and the rosette became more discouraged. She didn't want to give up on Sasuke returning home... His mission could've taken a bit longer? Maybe he took a nap and woke up late? Or even ate late? He said he'd be coming home... Yet there wasn't a single sign of him returning. She fought back the tears that wanted to form, trying to ignore the creeping feeling of despair that was filling her heart.

Suddenly, she heard a loud tap on the kitchen window and she rushed from the table to see what it was, nearly knocking it over as a result. On the windowsill was a messenger bird, a rolled up paper tied to its left leg. As quickly as she could, Sakura opened up the window and extended out her left hand, allowing the bird to land upon it and shaking off its feathers, then proceeded to remove the scroll with her right. With its message delivered, before the rosette even had the chance to grab a towel to try and dry off the bird even a little bit, he flew back out the window. Watching it for a moment before closing up the window, she tend turned her attention back to the scroll. Her hands were trembling and her heart was racing... this was from Sasuke, wasn't it? It had to be... maybe he had a surprise for her and it was a note telling her to go outside! Or maybe it was a notice from Sarada, saying she'll be a day late coming home. After all, she was on a mission... all Sakura knew that it was a message for her and that she needed to read it.

Unrolled on the table, the ink surprisingly not smeared, Sakura read the message she had told herself wasn't coming. Clearly written in Sasuke's script was "Sorry; unable to come home". Nothing more or less, just that.

The dam of tears Sakura tried to held back spilled over, falling from her face and onto the paper, her fists clenched and shaking, her lip quivering. "Damn it.. Damn it Sasuke-kun, why...?" she whispered, her voice cracking, "You said you were coming home, so why aren't you home? Sarada needs you home, I need you home... why the fuck aren't you home like you said you would be!?"

Her anger spilling over, her fists hit the table, breaking it into pieces, the note flying up before floating gently down onto the ground. With very little mind to the rain outside, Sakura grabbed her keys and ran outside, locking the door behind her and going off down the streets of Konoha. She wasn't sure where she was going to go; all she knew was that she couldn't stay in that house right now. All she wanted was her husband to come home, even if it was just for a little bit... why does it always end up this way? It hurt her, it cut her deep to once again be so hopeful for her Sasuke to come home, only to have it dashed.

Her feet hit the pavement hard, puddles of water stinging her legs, her face wet with tears and rain, as she continued to run and run, her rage flip-flopping between it and undeniable sadness. Her eyes closed to most everything, she didn't even realize until far later that she had ran clear out of Konoha and was mere feet away from the orphanage. She slowed down as she approached the darken walls, her lungs screaming for steady breathing, her eyes looking up at the building blurring from tiredness and tears. _'I ended up coming here,'_ she thought as she panted, _'It's so late though...'_

Not wanting to turn back, she moved around the building, looking for any signs of someone being up, not wanting to knock on the gates and risk waking up any of the clones. Finally, she saw a dim light coming from one window and she approached it, looking inside as sneakily as possible. She could see inside that it was Kabuto's room, and he was sitting at the table, reading a book. He wasn't in his robes, but instead a violet long-sleeved shirt and black pants, his glasses looking like they were slipping off of his nose based on the illumination of the light.

Trying to be somewhat quiet, she tapped on the window, trying to get his attention without bringing any other attention to herself as well. At first, Kabuto looked up confused, looking towards the door thinking it was from there, before turning around towards the window. He stood up quickly, his mouth agaped and she was almost certain he gasped upon seeing her, rushing over to it and twisting the lock before opening it up. "Sakura! What are you doing out there, in this weather!?" he scolded, helping the rosette in, his hands gripping at her waist as he led her down off the bed and onto the floor.

As soon as her feet hit the floor, she looked up at Kabuto through her fallen wet locks, her emerald eyes scanning his golden ones. Kabuto could see how puffy and red they were, and gingerly brushed away the hair from her face. He quickly closed the window and then turned back towards her. "What happened?" he asked softly, "Wait, let me get you a towel."

The rosette quickly shook her head, grabbing tightly at his shirt, stunning him as she buried her face into his chest. "No! No... don't leave me right now, okay?" she pleaded, "I don't want to be alone."

"Sakura... You're going to catch a cold like this."

"I don't care. Please... don't go."

He didn't know what to say at that point; all he could do was stand there, hands hovering over her frames, unsure whether to hold her or to push her back. He didn't know what happened, but he was assured it was something to do with Sasuke. Gently pushing her back, he leaned over enough to grab the blanket from his bed, wrapping it over her head and pulling it over her frame, then wrapping his arms calmly around her. It wasn't a towel, but it would at least do for the moment, and Sakura started to feel a sense of warmth and calm.

They stood their in silence, with only the rain and the occasional sob from Sakura breaking it, for quite awhile before finally the rosette calmed enough to pull herself back from Kabuto's grasp. "What happened?" the bespectacled male asked again.

"Sasuke-kun... he isn't coming home again. He said he was, but he didn't," Sakura whispered, "All he did was send me a note saying he was sorry... he was sorry."

"Oh, Sakura..." Kabuto whispered, brushing his fingers through the wisps of pink hair peeking out from the blanket.

"I hoped, I wished, I prayed that this time he would come home. I thought he would, but no... all he could do is say he's sorry. Sorry for what? For not keeping his word? For leaving his wife and daughter home alone again? I kept hoping that maybe now, now that he and Sarada had started to get closer, he'd stay home more, be willing to come home more. But no... he can't do that..."

Her grip tightened on Kabuto's shirt and his hands covered hers, feeling how cold and shaky they were. "It's not fair... why do we have to continue to suffer? Why do I? Why is it that I get this small hint of being a family, only to have it yanked away from me?" Sakura spat out, her eyes welling up again.

"Sakura, I'm..." Kabuto began to say, but he couldn't get the words out before she snapped up her head and stared at him, her eyes flashing rage and sadness, the blanket falling off of her body and onto the floor.

"All I want is to not be lonely anymore! I want to be loved like a wife should be loved! I hate every night how I go to bed and I'm all alone, and sometimes I don't even have Sarada there to even try and make things less lonely... I hate those nights when I thought I could be eating a meal with Sasuke-kun and instead I sit there eating alone! I hate looking out the window and wondering where he is, what he's doing, when he's going to come back to us... I hate it! I don't want to be alone anymore! I want to be loved, I want to be cared for, I don't want to be left alone in silence and darkness anymore! I don't want to hurt anymore because I'm all by myself!"

He listened as she screamed out her laments, his eyes never leaving hers, his hands shaking along with hers. Hearing her, seeing her, feeling her... it all tormented him. He hated this, he hated her pain, her loneliness, her cries for love and care... all of it stabbed at him over and over like a knife, like it did her, and all he wanted to do was something, anything to make her just stop...!

Without a single warning, he captured her lips with his own, his arms wrapping around her and his hands burying themselves within her hair, his passion and pressing pushing them both back a few steps. Sakura didn't flinch or push back, instead one hand gripped harder to his shirt while the other quickly slid up to behind his neck, returning the affection with as much force as she could add.

There was desperation in the motion, neither wanting to let go or end, each wanting more and more, and each willing to give and take that more... Kabuto nipped gently at Sakura's bottom lip, making her moan as her lips parted slightly, his tongue slipping in and twirling with hers like a dance. She moaned again at the motion, the hand in his hair gripping harder as one of his hands slid down to her waist, pulling her as close to him as he could. They stepped back again, tripping over the blanket a bit and falling back onto the bed, his body on top of hers. The kiss was broken only for that moment to gasp, but quickly they continued, her hands finding themselves wrapping around his shoulders and her nails digging into his shirt, his hands grasping onto her waist tightly, each finding enjoyment in the motions and noises the other were making.

It was finally when they couldn't catch their breath anymore and their passion had started to cool only slightly did their lips finally part, their lips swollen, their eyes glazed over with mixtures of emotion, their breathing shallow.

"I love you, Sakura."

The words stunned the rosette. "W-what?" she whispered breathlessly.

"I love you, Sakura," Kabuto repeated, "I've loved you for so long, since you came back into my life and we started to become friends. I don't know exactly when, or exactly why, but I did. And all this time I've been... I've been hiding it, not wanting it to show or wanting to scare you away. Because I know these feelings aren't right for me to have."

He moved from atop Sakura's body, sitting up at the edge of the bed by her legs. She sat up as well, leaning up against the wall and pillows. "You're married, and happily so I thought... but even like this, you're still married and I shouldn't have these feelings for you. But I do... every day and night, I think of you, dream of you, wishing to pull you close, to hold you, to kiss you just like that," Kabuto continued, "I wanted to see your smile every day, hear your voice... I wanted to talk with you, walk with you, and even if all we did was sit in silence and watched the sunset like we did, I wouldn't mind it every day because you'd be by my side. But I knew it was wrong for me to covet you, to wish that you'd feel the same, because I know how much you love Sasuke-kun."

Sakura could see his hands clenching on his lap, looking down at them and then back up at him as he gritted his teeth. "But when you started telling me those things... about not wanting to be alone, about wanting to be loved, I couldn't take it. Even if for a second I could show you my feelings, I could kiss you, I could love you, I wanted to do it. Because damn it, I don't regret for even a second what happened. Even though I should, I don't. For those brief moments, I felt what it was like to love you and would do it again in a heartbeat. Over and over again, I'd take that chance..." he continued, stalling at the end, "Even with knowing... even with knowing it wasn't meant to happen."

They sat there in silence, Kabuto unable to look away from the floor and Sakura unable to look away from him. She had thought of it before, on what Kabuto's feelings were, but she never would've believed she was right. He loved her... and there was no denying in that kiss that it was truly love. More surprisingly, she couldn't believe her own responses to it. She wasn't wanting to smack him and call him stupid, or wanting to run away from him in confusion, nor did she feel any sort of regret over her own actions. It was then it dawned on her that she kissed him back with as much intensity as he gave her, and... she didn't mind it. It thrilled her, confused her, excited her, scared her, but she didn't mind it. To be in his arms, to feel the touch of passion around her, to entwine herself in a forbidden feeling like this made every bit of her shiver with fear and delight. What she felt couldn't be love for him – or at least not like the love she had for Sasuke – but there was something there, buried deep in her chest that was bursting to come out and control her again, that she wanted to experience again.

It was wrong, so very wrong... but yet she couldn't deny what she was wanting in this moment, what she desired in this second of time... and fuck every bit of her that was telling her no, she didn't want to care.

She leaned over towards him, touching his cheek with one hand and resting the other on his. "Kabuto... show me more," she whispered.

He didn't respond at first, his mouth agape as he turned his head towards her, saffron eyes flickering with confusion and need. "Sakura...?" he replied, barely audible.

She leaned forward a bit more, placing a gentle kiss on his lips, "Show me more of your feelings. I want to know more."

He released a breath he didn't even know he held before turning himself completely, wrapping his arms around her frame and kissing her again, gently pushing her down onto the bed once again.


	6. Wants, Needs

Authoress' Note: This is the final chapter of Wants! Thank you everyone that has gone on this journey with me. I do plan to write a sequel eventually, as there's more I want to explore, but not sure when I may begin that. Still, I hope you'll return for that, and anything else I may write in the future! Also, obviously this is going to include some explicit content. You've been warned!

Chapter 6: Wants, Needs...

Fire... it felt like her body was on fire, Sakura described to herself. A burning, powerful, blissful fire covering every inch of her as she felt and experience the affections that were being showered on her.

Between her legs, hands holding down her arms beside her head, lips leaving hot trails of kisses down her throat, Kabuto was above her, his actions eliciting soft moans that the rosette couldn't believe were emitting from her. He could feel his breath whispering things against her skin, although he spoke no words. She squirmed a bit as his teeth gently nipped at her collar bone, feeling her shirt rising up her body, exposing some of her stomach to Kabuto's body heat, raising her own temperature even further.

"K-Kabuto..." she whispered, "This..."

"What is it, Sakura?" he said, carefully, unsure of what she might possibly say.

"This... feels good," she replied, "I feel like my body is on fire."

He smirked, lifting his head from its spot on her neck and looking down at her, "Mine does, as well."

He leaned down and captured her lips with his own, releasing her arms and running them gently down her sides, finding where her shirt had started to lift up, his hand brushing over her stomach. She moaned and twitched at the touches, her arms wrapping around his neck as they continued upward. She gasped as soon as she felt just the whisper of his fingers rubbing against the underside of her covered breast, "Ah!"

Kabuto's hand froze, "Did I go too far?"

"N-no, I was just surprised, that's all," she explained, her fingers running through his hair soothingly, "Please, don't stop. I still want to know."

For a moment, he still hesitated. Sakura leaned forward, kissing him again to show that she was still serious, allowing him to calm down. With her allowance, his hand moved again, brushing up and underneath her bra, touching bare skin. The rosette gasped again, but this time it didn't cause him to stop. With a soft touch, he grasped her right breast, gently caressing it, his thumb rubbing over her nipple. "Oh...!" Sakura let out in a breathless cry, "Kabuto!"

"Yes, Sakura?" he replied, running his thumb over and over again against her appendage, "What is it?"

"That... feels good," she replied, her body starting to arch at the ministrations.

Again, he smirked, his other hand going towards the buttons of her shirt, undoing them and pulling them apart, revealing her body to him. She started to blush, but from embarrassment or the heat, she wasn't sure, but she sure as hell wasn't about to stop him from removing the barriers that kept them apart. Just as he was doing that, her hands made their way down his torso, finding the end of his shirt and lifting it upward. Following her lead, he assisted in removing it, lifting it off and over his head, tossing it onto the floor beside them.

It was then that Sakura finally got a good look at him, realizing all of the scars and cracks on his torso. He was battle-worn, every marking from his life on the battlefield, of the choices he made, whether good or bad. She was taken aback by the sight of it, wondering which of these could've been caused by her. Mindlessly, her fingers brushed over them, watching his skin twitch and ripple with her touches. He didn't stop her, instead he watched her eyes as they softened, moving as her fingers moved.

He brought a hand up to hers, wrapping around it, forcing Sakura to look at him. She watched as he smiled at her, bringing her hand up to his lips and kissing each of her fingertips. He moved to her palm, his lips lingering there as he looked at her with saffron orbs. She could feel her heartbeat racing even more than before at the expression he was given her, an expression she never saw before and one she found herself enjoying that it was being shown to only her. She licked her lips, her free arm moving to back around his neck, pulling him down closer to her and kissing him over and over again.

 _'Kabuto... I don't know what this feeling is. But... But...'_

As they kissed, Kabuto's hands moved to underneath her body, his fingers making quick work of unhooking Sakura's bra, lifting her up slightly to completely remove it and her shirt, tossing them both to the floor next to his own. As he did, he also took in the sight beneath him. Sakura's pink hair was splayed across his pillow, her lips swollen and agaped, her emerald eyes half-lidded and vibrant. Her skin glistened with small specks of sweat, and suddenly as his eyes roamed over her half-naked form, she felt suddenly vulnerable. With a blush, she started to cover herself, only to have her wrists stopped.

"No... Don't cover your beauty."

"I feel embarrassed, having you view me like that. Like..."

"Like a lover would?" Kabuto completed, receiving a very slight nod in return; he chuckled lightly at it, "That's because this is how I feel."

He leaned down, kissing her throat again, "I love this part of you."

Sakura moaned as his lips trailed to her right shoulder - "And this part" - and then to her left - "And here as well" - before making their way down her chest. One hand began to caress her right breast, doing the same ministration as before, while he darted his tongue out against her left one, "And these. I love every bit of you, Sakura. You're so beautiful."

The wet feeling against her skin sent a jolt of pleasure through her body and she elicited a loud groan, "K-kabuto!"

That reaction also shook Kabuto as well. He could feel his pants getting tighter around him, and could feel the desire twinging at him. But he wanted to wait; he wasn't going to rush this one chance he had. He wanted to show her every bit of his love for her, by showering her with all of the passion, affection, and care he could show her. But damn, every moan she released, every touch of her skin, every time she said his name, it all made him swell up and it was becoming harder to think, harder to breathe, harder to control himself...

Again, his tongue brushed over her nipple, swirling around her areola, before he did a small nip at her breast. Sakura's hands gripped hard at his hair, arching at the feelings, crying out his name again in steady whispers. She couldn't believe _how_ good this felt; how long had it been since she was touched like this? Had she ever been touched like this? Everything in her mind was jumbled... everything that was trying to tell her to stop this before it could get too far was turning into her pleas to keep this going. She wanted this, she wanted more of this, she didn't want this to stop...

His mouth continued to play with its newfound toy, but his other hand began to move downward, trailing down her stomach towards the hem of her pants, but then moved back up her side, his touches nearly tickling Sakura in a flurry of delight. Her hands brushed down his back, feeling more of his scars, but finding his skin to be surprisingly soft despite them. She was finding it harder and harder to keep quiet, something Kabuto noticed as he stopped his ministrations and returned to her lips, their tongues dancing around in sloppy passion. They both knew that they needed to keep things quiet, as to not awaken anyone else slumbering, lest they get caught in their forbidden tryst.

Despite that fear, as they moved back and looked into each other's eyes, seeing the shared lust and desire they each shared, they didn't want to stop. They wanted to keep going, they wanted more of each other, and what each could give and take. Sakura licked her lips, "Kabuto... show me more."

"I'll show you everything, Sakura. Everything I have, everything I am, it's yours," he replied, _'For tonight, and forever.'_

She didn't reply with words; instead, she lifted herself up a bit, her lips touching against his neck before moving towards his right shoulder, where she found a scar. Her lips trailed over it tenderly for a second, then she moved towards another one that was near his left shoulder, giving it the same treatment. Kabuto closed his eyes, the feeling of her kisses making him moan as he wrapped his arms around her waist, his fingers brushing up against her sides, pulling her closer to him as she gave the same affection to every scar and crack she could find.

As she moved to his chest, her hand brushed down his stomach, making him twitch as the touches as a reflex, and as he did to her before, her fingers brushed against the hem of his pants. However, unlike with her, her palm hit something more and it nearly made her jump back. She knew _exactly_ what it was that she felt, but... is this where they were progressing to? Suddenly, Sakura was becoming more of aware of what they were doing, what she was doing. Her brain was sending her the warning signs, telling her to stop, telling her this was wrong, that she shouldn't do this-

"Sakura... are you wanting to stop?"

Her head snapped up, and she could see Kabuto staring at her with concern, the ardor cooling a bit. "I know what you're thinking right now... I could feel it in your hand. If you want to stop, we will right now," he stated, "You don't need to continue anything for my sake; if you are feeling calm and satisfied, then that is enough for me."

"No!" the rosette exclaimed, "I..."

"We'll stop. It's alright-"

"No!"

Fiercely, Sakura leapt at the man, her lips attacking his, their bodies touching and rubbing harshly against each other, Kabuto falling to the bed underneath the rosette. Before he could even realize what had happened, she was straddling him, his hardened member positioned perfectly beneath her own clothed nethers. He tried to force her back, trying to make her stop, but each time he tried to push she wouldn't relent, determined to kiss him with every ounce of her strength.

 _'I don't want to end this. I still want this. I'm scared, I know I'm doing something wrong, but I want this... I want you Kabuto, so please don't stop this!'_

"Saku- mmph!"

"I want you too, Kabuto."

The gentle tone of her words stunned him. With him no longer struggling for a moment, Sakura sat up, moving off of him and to his side. "I'm scared, but I want this," she whispered, "I want you, in this moment, right now. I admit, I wasn't sure what to think when I felt... you... but I knew it was the same as me."

She grabbed his hand, bringing it towards her pants, motioning for him to slide his hand down past it. He watched her cautiously as she guided him, her fingers leading his past the hem of it and her panties, biting his lip as her expression changed from one of determination to one of pleasure as his touch reached her outer folds. There he was surprised to find her heated and wet; was this his doing? Did he make her feel such a strong feeling of wanton bliss? The look in her eyes told him yes, begging him to go further.

With an unsure touch, he brushed a finger lower, sliding it only slightly inside once, then twice, then three times. Sakura's head lulled back, each touch making her moan in unadulterated pleasure. "Ah... Kabuto..." she whispered, "Do that again."

Spurn by her cries, he slid in his finger completely, her slick walls reacting to his touch, moving it in and out in a slow pump. She moaned again, over and over, the feeling of it pushing her closer and closer to the edge. Holy _fuck_ , how long had it been since she's been touched here? Too long, she knew that, because how in the hell could just the most careful of touches make her feel this way? Her eyes closed as he continued, her body quivering in delight.

"Kabuto... please... don't stop...!"

Those words was all that was needed for Kabuto to break; he quickly sat up and with some assistance, pulling down the clothes that got in their way, stopping for the moment to allow for them to be completely removed and tossed to the side, his fingers quickly returning to his ministration, once again kissing Sakura as he did the very first time. Sakura's hands gripped at his hair, clawing down his back, doing anything she could to keep her steady as he stroked her... first softly with one finger, then harder as another slid in along with it, going faster and faster with each pump. Behind her lids, the rosette could see stars, her stomach started to coil and she couldn't stop the call of his name as she got closer and closer _and closer_ to the edge.

"Kabuto... Kabuto, please, I'm-"

"Do it... Sakura."

"K-Kabuto!"

Finally the dam broke, and her head snapped back, her fingers digging into Kabuto's skin as she reached her climax, the waves of pleasure rushing out of her as his fingers began to slow down. As he removed them for good, she fell to the bed, her chest heaving with heavy pants, her eyes blurred and half-lidded as she looked up at her lover, feeling for the moment only slightly terrible but completely satisfied.

Kabuto watched her body tried to come down from her high, bringing his fingers to his lips and tasting the juices that covered them, the drips of sin and desire covering his tongue in a way that he could spend his entire life trying to describe but never coming close to it. He smirked, knowing that Sakura was watching his actions. "You taste very sweet," he remarked huskily, "Sweeter than anything I could even imagine."

"Don't... don't say such cheesy things," she said breathlessly, feeling her face heat up a little more than it already was.

"But it's true... Your juices, your lips, your skin... every bit of you taste like the sweetest fruit. You're the best aphrodisiac."

As he spoke, he began to remove the remainder of his clothes, positioning himself above her, his body between her legs. He could feel Sakura's breath hitch as he got closer, her body instinctively arching at just the brush of his member against her sensitive outer folds. He raised a hand to her cheek, caressing it tenderly, "Sakura... I'll ask you one last time, because I fear if this begins I may not be able to stop... Do you want this? Do you want me?"

She bit her bottom lip, gazing into his golden orbs. They were still clouded over with the same desire and love that she had seen all night, but she could see his fear, his hesitation, his pain. Through them, she could see her own reflection, the same feelings she was holding for him. This wasn't what she expected to happen, coming through the rain, but it's what she wanted. She still didn't know what she was truly feeling for Kabuto himself right now, but tonight... tonight he was her lover, he was her mate, and she wanted more than anything, right now, to be connected with him completely and totally.

Her hand touched his cheek, his opposing one to his hand on hers, "Yes. Show me everything, Kabuto."

As the words left her lips, he smiled. Sweetly, he began to kiss her again, his hands taking hers and resting them above her head, slowly sliding himself within Sakura. They both moaned at the touch, connecting in the most intimate way, and for the moment they were still, allowing each other to enjoy this new first. With a glance at each other telling each other they were ready for more, he began to move, thrusting in and out with a calm and steady pace.

Each move made Sakura's breath hitch, releasing with a sweet moan. Once again, she was in disbelief at how good she was feeling. The happiness she felt as he pushed inside of her, the sadness she felt when he pulled away even for a split second, the craving of wanting him more and more... This was the most bliss she swore she had ever felt in the longest time! Her grip on his hands tightened, her head lulled back, she rode each wave of pleasure that he was giving her. "Kabuto... Kabuto," she whispered, "Gods... this feels so good!"

"It does... your body is heaven," Kabuto stated out in between groans, "The way you feel, the sound of your breath hitching, your moans... You have no idea how much I wanted this."

"... How much...?"

He chuckled, thrusting into her harder, making her gasp and cry out his name. "Even more than that," he said huskily, doing it again and receiving the same response, "Your voice is so beautiful when you cry out like that."

"K-kabuto...!"

"Say my name like that again."

He began to speed up his motions, his hands moving to her hips to give him more balance to allow him to push into her harder. Sakura's voice got louder and louder with each movement, her hands grasping at the bed, trying to hold onto anything as she neared her second climax.

"Kabuto... Kabuto!"

"Again. Say my name again, Sakura."

"Kabuto! I'm about to-"

"Again!"

"KABUTO!"

Once again, the waves of intense pleasure washed over and Sakura released, her body arching and her juices flowing out of her, unable to catch her breath, her lips mouthing words but unable to speak them. Kabuto kept going, his own orgasm nearing, but not wanting to stop this feeling. Her walls tightening around him, the flow of her release, her moans, her cries... fuck, he wanted to keep this going. He didn't want this to end; he knew as soon as they had both finished, then this spell that had taken over them would be broken and they would then have to face the consequences of their decision. He wasn't ready for that; he wanted to hold on this moment for as long as he could.

Sakura grasped as his shoulders, "Kabuto... Don't stop yet. Please!"

"I won't," he replied, "Sakura. Sakura..."

"Kabuto... I... I like that too," the rosette replied with hushed honesty; she really was enjoying the sound of her name being called out in this state of pleasure.

He leaned down, his face nuzzling into her neck, "I'm about there, Sakura... Say my name again. Please."

"Kabuto...!"

"Sakura...!"

Their right hands found each other, clasping together as he made his final pushes into her, the two of them reaching a shared climax together, their voices calling out each other's name in a series of echos, connecting still as they did when they began. Finally Kabuto removed himself from Sakura, falling to the side of her in a heap of sweat, pants, and satisfaction. The room was quiet, save for their breathing and the sound of light rain tapping on the window. They were both tired, but feeling a serene sense of peace.

Still, Kabuto knew that it wasn't going to last... soon, Sakura was going to realize herself, what she had done, what they had done, and hell help him he wasn't about to go through that now. He was with the one he loved the most, his rosette, his Sakura... he got to love her, he bore his soul to her, and he made her his, if only for one night. He wanted to keep her for just a little while longer...

He turned towards her, watching her as she continued to catch her breath, her eyes closed. He reached out his left hand towards her face, tilting it towards him. Her eyes opened slightly to stare at him, her eyes not yet showing signs of tears or regret. "Kabuto," she whispered, licking her lips, "I..."

"You don't have to say anything," he replied, kissing her gently, then pulling away to grab the blanket still on the floor.

He settled down beside her again, wrapping them both up in the blanket and then his arms around her waist, pulling her close. "Let's sleep for now," he said, removing his glasses, folding them up, and placing them on the bookcase.

"...When we wake up, will we...?"

"We can talk."

They didn't say another word to each other after that. Sakura nuzzled up against his chest, the sound of his heartbeat in combination with the rain and her own state lulling her into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

When Sakura awoke, the rain had stopped and the sun was just barely starting to rise. However, more alarming to her was that she was alone.

She looked around, not seeing Kabuto around at all. She did notice that his glasses and pants were gone and that where he laid on the bed was still a bit warm, so he couldn't have been gone for too long, but still it made her uneasy. Where did he go? He was going to come back, right?

As she worried, she heard the subtle click of a door opening and the beam of a light breaking the dimness of the room. She didn't notice before, the other door, but she safely assumed that now it was for Kabuto's bathroom and she relaxed knowing that he hadn't left.

He came into her line of sight and she smiled, pulling the blanket closer to her naked form, "Good morning."

"... Good morning," Kabuto replied, smiling but also feeling apprehensive as he spoke, pulling out his chair and sitting down on it, facing the bed, "I left some hot water for you in the basin, in case you wish to wash up."

"Thank you; I appreciate that," she responded, picking up on his own hesitation and beginning to feel her own.

They both knew what was coming, and they both dreaded it. They needed to talk about what last night meant, and how they could move forward... _if_ they could move forward. Before this point, they were close as friends could be, but now... now there was this. There was an intimate connection, something that triggered both of them with feelings for the other that couldn't be ignored. Then there was the additional problem... what did Sakura herself feel? She now knows that Kabuto is in love with her; how can she just ignore that and yet still be just friends? What about her own feelings towards him? She couldn't deny that there was parts of her playing with the idea of her falling for him, even in the slightest, ever since their first kiss. But she was married, her heart is supposed to belong to Sasuke and Sasuke alone... but yet, Kabuto was there, creeping into her soul and she couldn't just push away the facts of her own emotions.

"Nothing has to change."

"Huh?" Sakura squeaked, her eyes settled on Kabuto, his gaze intently focused on her.

"Last night... if you want to forget it happened, or treat it as a mistake, you can. I don't wish to lose your friendship, so if forgetting everything we had said or done will allow you to be able to stay by my side, then I understand," he explained, trying to keep his voice steady but he knew there was a crack to it that he couldn't shake, "Nothing has to change between us."

The rosette didn't say anything, her mouth slightly agape in surprise. She didn't know why, but... something about that made her angry. _Very angry_. She stood up from the bed, pulling the blanket around her body and walked towards him. Before he could even see her right next to him, he felt the sharp burst of pain against his cheek, her hand connecting against it in a harsh slap.

"Ow!" he cried out, covering his sore face and snapping his head back, "What was- Huh?"

He froze when he saw tears in Sakura's emerald eyes, her hands grasping at the blanket to keep it close but yet they were shaking. "How... how can you say that? How can you say such a thing?" she questioned, her voice quivering.

"Sakura, why are you-?"

"I don't want to just forget what happened! And... yeah... it was a mistake, but it's a mistake I wanted to make. I told you I wanted you to show me your feelings. And I thought... I thought that meant something to you!"

She rapidly wiped at her eyes and nose, "What happened last night... It was magical and amazing and I don't want to forget it. I don't know why, but... but I was happy it happened. It's been so long since I've felt like I was actually loved. And that it was you I was sharing such a moment with... Last night, I wanted no one else but you. I can't... I can't say that I love you in the way I know you love me, but I obviously feel something and I don't want to just throw that away and forget it!"

"Sakura..." he whispered mindlessly, unable to say anything in rebuttal to her cries.

Hearing her speak, hearing her cry, hearing her plead... it made his heart race. When he woke up, he was resolving himself to let go of his feelings, pushing this to being a one-oft memory for him to look back on in wistful sadness, willing to whatever it would take if he meant not losing Sakura for good. He knew he could never completely stop loving her, but if it meant still keeping her by his side as a friend, he was willing to do it, his own heartbreak be damned. But now... hearing her like this, he wasn't wanting to listen to his resolve.

He stood up and started to wrap his arms around Sakura's body, although she tried to move back and resist at first before she finally broke down and allowed herself to be held. "I'm sorry that I made you cry, Sakura... I didn't mean to hurt you," he apologized, stroking her pink hair gingerly.

"I know we may never be able to go back to the way we were, but hell I don't want to forget this!"

"I don't either. I don't want to ever stop these feelings for you."

They parted slightly, enough for them to be able to see each other's faces and lean in for a long, passionate kiss, only ending when they both needed to catch their breath. Their foreheads touching, they kept their gazes upon each other, Kabuto's hands on her cheeks brushing the tears away and one of Sakura's hand touching his face where she had hit him.

"Then... we'll still be friends. We won't let this stand in our way of that. But," Kabuto began to speak, "If you ever need a release like this again, if you ever need to be shown that you're loved and wanted, then I'll be there. I'll show you over and over and over again all of the love you deserve."

"No... I can't use you like that! How could you demean yourself like that!?"

"It's not using me. Trust me, I'd be getting a benefit from it as well. To be able to make love to you would provide me with as much bliss as it would for you."

"... Stop saying such cheesy things," Sakura replied, blushing again, making him chuckle.

"It's just how I feel, Sakura," he said, kissing her palm before kissing her lips again, "I suppose you should try and get dressed; I'll let you change in peace."

He began to back away, turning around to potentially go back to the bathroom to allow her privacy, but he felt a tug on his arm that brought him back around. Her eyes had a different look to them, a fiery look, one that was clouded over with a small hint of desire. She didn't say anything as she allowed the blanket to fall to the floor, pulling him to the bed and bringing her down with her. One arm went around his neck and the other grasping at his hand, pulling it down towards her privates.

He arched a brow at her motions, but didn't say anything in response. Instead, he smirked, kissing her heavily as his finger brushed against her outer folds; the only thing he really wanted to hear was her moan.

* * *

It has been nearly a month since their sinful rendezvous, and as they had talked about, they didn't allow for their tryst to cloud their friendship. At the times they were together – namely for Sakura's check-ups on Ura and the orphans – they smiled and chatted as if nothing had happened, yet secretly inside they were both replaying their words, their feelings, their promises. However, they made sure they kept things in check, not wanting to let their secret slip, let their connection shine when no one should ever know.

For Sakura, the memories still conflicted within her. Two days after their night together, Sasuke returned home. He was home for ten days, but during that time she felt like they weren't at all together. He cuddled with her at night from time to time, and sometimes he would kiss her, but there was no passion. There was no sex, barely any words, no declarations of love. It was as if she was still alone, and when Sasuke left out on another mission she felt anger and frustration that her husband left with just a note saying that he'll return soon. There wasn't even anything saying "I love you", just that he was gone and leaving her in the coldness of their bedroom.

This time, however, whenever she got angry at Sasuke's lack of attention, she would remember Kabuto's affections. She tried not to think about it, but at the most random of times she would suddenly feel her body heat up and an ache in her stomach she knew was her own delight. It'd be then she would see the images of his face, remembering the feel of his lips on her skin, the steady thrusts of his cock inside of her... she'd remember it in vulgar detail and sometimes she'd violently shake her head to try and remove the images from her brain, although the feelings still remained.

At night, it was worst. She'd find herself laying in bed, trying to go to sleep, and suddenly her memory would begin to replay the tape and her stomach would coil again. In her own sinful way, she would begin to touch herself, pretending that her fingers were his, that he was able to hear her whispering his name, wanting so much for him to make her orgasm as he did before... she would get close, but would stop herself short of her release, realizing then what she was doing and hating herself for masturbating to someone other than her husband. But she couldn't help it... every time she thought about it, the more she wanted it again. The more she craved it again, and despite knowing it was wrong, she didn't want to keep stopping herself.

Finally, after a month, she finally broke. She had to go to him, she had to see him, had to feel him, had to make love to him again. She couldn't resist it anymore. She knew this was just lust and loneliness that spoke the most, but it was also her own feelings. There was reason why she was constantly dreaming of him, thinking of him, desiring him: she was falling for him. It may not be love like his, but it was something, and despite everything telling her to stay put, she found herself leaving home late at night and making her way to his bedroom, right outside of his window.

She found him awake, reading as he was before, and she tapped on the window quietly, trying to gain his attention. He turned at the sound, but unlike before he wasn't shocked by her appearance. He walked over to the window, his gaze settled on hers, as he opened it and allowed her in, closing it behind her. They stood there quietly, staring at each other.

"Sakura."

The husky, sexy call of her name was all the rosette needed; throwing herself at him, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck, his pulling her close around her waste, their lips attacking each other as if they were tasting their first drink of water in the longest amount of time. Their bodies melded together as if they were meant to be together, their legs moving them back towards the bed, falling onto it as they have before, their lips parting only for a moment for Sakura to speak the words they both wanted to hear.

"Kabuto... I need you."

 **-end-**


End file.
